Remnants of Frances rain misery on Upstate

Brian and Cristin Cromer carry a cooler of food from their home, which sits along the Saluda River on Old Easley Bridge Road. Their family woke at 5:30 Wednesday morning to find the river had crested its banks and had begun to flood their home. Staff/Bart Boatwright Hurricanes - Photo gallery - Tracking Map - Print a tracking map AP STORM HEADLINES Recent Headlines: Frances a triple whammy to state tourism Residents prepare again after dealing with earlier storms Read more of GreenvilleOnline's coverage of Hurricane Frances >> e-mail this story Related Related Web site • In Asheville: Flood damage heavy, schools close

"You've got trouble," her neighbor told her.

She took a look out the window of her Old Easley Bridge Road by the Saluda River.

"Water was all around the house and half of my stuff was floating into the river," said the 36-year-old, whose family is in the construction business.

The remnants of Hurricane Frances moved through the Upstate in waves leaving an electrical worker dead, several homes evacuated, school starts delayed by an hour and many fearing streams near their homes might jump their banks.

At the Crossroads Apartments at Cleveland Street and Faris Road, a storm sewer erupted and kept people such as Katie Steed from getting to work. The water was inside her Ford Thunderbird and a flooded Toyota Camry blocked her in.

"Can't work, can't make money," said Steed, a waitress who holds down two jobs.

Nelson Escobar and Joe Russell frantically moved cars as the water rose, and by 8:30 a.m. Greenville firefighters had blocked off the parking lot.

"It's a disaster," said Escobar, also unable to get to his job Wednesday morning. "My dad opened the door to his car and nothing but water came out," Escobar said.

Two days of heavy rain, tornadoes, power outages and flooding from Frances was just the latest in a series of violent storms that have raked the Upstate the past few months.

Glenn Carroll Wyatt, 33, a Pike Electrical lineman, was killed when an exposed line hit him in the side as he repaired a transformer off Easley Bridge Road late Tuesday, said Kent Dill, Greenville County deputy coroner. Emergency crews rushed him to the hospital where he was pronounced dead about midnight.

The full scope of damage won't be known until later today, said Scot Wendelken, Greenville County director of emergency management. The July 29 flood caused close to $6 million in damage mainly because six inches of rain fell in a few hours over one section of Greenville.

Jane Sosebee, BellSouth's regional direct, said late Wednesday that about 2,500 Upstate telephones were out of service, some due to flooding, some the result of other weather-related outages.

"We're working 24 hours a day to clear up the problems," she said. "Weather creates unique problems."

More rain fell this week, but it was widespread and fell over a 24-hour period. Fewer than a dozen homes reported minor flooding.

"If it continued raining, it could have gotten much worse here," he said.

Up to 9.6 inches of rain have fallen in parts of the Upstate since early Tuesday morning, said Doug Outlaw, National Weather Service meteorologist. The highest totals were seen in northern Greenville, Pickens, Oconee and Anderson counties.

Damage here wasn't as extensive as elsewhere in the state and in the North Carolina mountains, Wendelken said. Twenty tornadoes were reported statewide, but none in Greenville County.

Laurens County saw no major damage, but did have some downed trees, said Ashly Wilbanks, Project Manager for the Laurens County Emergency Management office. The roads also were in good shape, said Lance Cpl. Steve Sluder, Highway Patrol spokesman.

"Knock on wood, there have been a few accidents due to the weather, people hydroplaning, but nothing major and no fatalities," he said.

Schools in Oconee and Pickens counties took a one-hour delay Wednesday morning. Part of Ashmore Bridge Road in Mauldin was closed after a sinkhole caved in part of the blacktop.

By the afternoon, water was encroaching on the back door of the Cromers' home and became too deep for them to carry more stuff out. After carrying out their children's computers, they weren't sure where they were heading. She feared the house would be uninhabitable when they returned.

"When the river finishes going up and comes back down we'll know what we lost," she said.

Across the street, residents in a half dozen mobile homes near the Saluda River were forced to flee rising water, said Marion Cruell, Slater-Marietta assistant fire chief. The foundations of at least two structures were washed away.

Some Plano Drive houses experienced minor flooding, said Berea Fire Chief Gary Brock. Several houses on the street were completely flooded during the earlier storm in July.

Streets and fields near the West Washington Street railroad station in downtown Greenville were under water.

Charles Williams watched sewer water spew like a fountain and flood the parking lot outside his Cleveland Street apartment Wednesday morning.

"Smells like Charleston," he said.

The American Red Cross set up an emergency shelter at Augusta Heights Baptist Church for people who were forced out by the rain. It closed at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Ashley Engler said. "As far as I know, no one used it," she said.

The Reedy River rose three feet above its flood stage of eight feet, according to the weather service. Other flood prone areas near Gilder and Brushy creeks reported minor flooding.

In addition, close to 5,000 Duke Power customers lost electricity in the Upstate.

Staff Writers Jason Zacher, Vanita Washington, Andy Paras and E. Richard Walton contributed to this article

John Boyanoski can be reached at 298-4065.