Crews clean up downed trees as Catawba River rises caused by Hurricane Helene

Harlan Culberson, 7, splashed around in galoshes, pajama bottoms and a yellow raincoat Friday morning at Riverwalk in Rock Hill, S.C.

As his mother Lauren surveyed the flooding, caused by Hurricane Helene, fast-moving debris flowed down the Catawba River, which was overflowing its banks onto the walking trail.

Around the corner from the trail at the Pump House, a man threw out his fishing line from the parking lot, which also was flooded with river water. A handicap parking sign was nearly under water and trash bins were overturned.

These were among the images captured Friday morning in Rock Hill after Hurricane Helene made its swift ascent and crossed the region after making landfall late Thursday night.

Catawba River flooded

Six of the 11 lakes on the Catawba River chain crested above their full pond levels Friday morning. Five of them were three feet or more above normal levels.

Every lake except Fishing Creek Reservoir in South Carolina was above its target level, as Duke Energy moves water through the system to make way for more rain from Helene, The Herald previously reported.

Across town on Celanese Road, crews from the S.C. Department of Transportation cleaned up debris from a downed tree. Fallen trees scattered lawns throughout the county and caused power outages.

This story was originally published September 27, 2024 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Crews clean up downed trees as Catawba River rises caused by Hurricane Helene."