COLUMBIA, S.C. (WACH) — Downed trees are causing some traffic congestion and widespread power outages Thursday morning throughout parts of the Midlands, according to officials.
A downed tree blocked the roadway on Blanding Street in Columbia as the city experienced wind gusts up to 21 mph. Increasing wind speeds reportedly caused at least one more to topple in Orangeburg.
There was at least one down on Interstate 26 and another on Interstate 95 Thursday morning, officials say. Troopers were dealing with an accident on Interstate 20 at roughly the same time that caused some serious injuries and nearly stopped the flow of traffic, with cars moving at an average speed of 2 mph, according to highway patrol.
Deputies in Saluda County got their first storm-related call just before noon Thursday, as a small tree blocked a segment of Pine Grove Road, officials said. Another downed tree was reported on Wire and Hayes Crossing Roads in Lexington County.
At around 8:30 a.m., there were more than 200,000 power outages reported statewide, as wind speeds picked up, according to South Carolina Emergency Management officials. There had been just over 116,000 reported roughly an hour and a half before that.