South Carolina officials are working to provide aid to the tens of thousands of evacuees fleeing Hurricane Frances.

Extra Highway Patrol units have been dispatched to the state welcome center on Interstate 95 just north of the Georgia state line.

Drinking water and portable toilets have been brought to the rest area, which got so crowded at times that cars were parked on the shoulder of the entrance and exit ramps.

Inside, extra workers were brought in to help motorists make reservations at hotels farther up the road.

Officials also planned to open evacuation shelters in York County, Orangeburg and Florence for people fleeing the storm with no other place to stay.

An estimated two and a half million Floridians were told to evacuate in front of Frances.