From Staff Reports 

GREENVILLE, S.C. — South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster held a media briefing on Sept. 30 to share a report on the recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene, noting that there were 29 storm-related deaths in the state as of that afternoon.

Other state emergency officials shared updates on ongoing safety and health efforts.

Andrew Bateman with the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff said the top three counties impacted by power outages are Greenville (over 200,000), Spartanburg (over 154,000) and Anderson counties (over 72,000).

Mike Callahan, president of Duke Energy South Carolina, asked all drivers in the Upstate to move over for utility workers working to restore power.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency approved individual and public assistance for several counties including Greenville, Anderson, Pickens, Spartanburg and Oconee counties. The individual assistance is for residents whose properties received uninsured damage. The public assistance is for debris removal and emergency protective measures.

Fire officials remind residents that a “burning ban” is in effect for yard debris.

On Oct. 11,  a Disaster Recovery Center was opened in Greenville County to provide in-person assistance to South Carolinians affected by Hurricane Helene.

The Greenville County Center location is at the Freetown Community Center, 200 Alice Avenue in Greenville. It is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

Additional Disaster Recovery Centers will be open soon in other affected areas. One may visit any open center to meet with representatives of FEMA, the state of South Carolina and the U.S. Small Business Administration. No appointment is needed. To find other center locations, go to fema.gov/drc or text “DRC” and a Zip Code to 43362.

Homeowners and renters — in Abbeville, Aiken, Allendale, Anderson, Bamberg, Barnwell, Chester, Cherokee, Edgefield, Greenville, Greenwood, Hampton, Kershaw, Jasper, Laurens, Lexington, McCormick, Newberry, Oconee, Orangeburg, Pickens, Richland, Saluda, Spartanburg, Union and York counties, as well as tribal members of Catawba Indian Nation — may apply for federal disaster assistance, the governor noted at the briefing.

He added that the quickest way to apply is to go online to DisasterAssistance.gov. One also may apply by using the FEMA App for mobile devices or by calling toll-free at (800) 621-3362. 

The telephone line is open every day and help is available in many languages, McMaster said  If an individual uses a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, one must give FEMA his or her number for that service.