Friday, 09/30/2022. Today was the day. The remnants of Ian were already moving through Charleston. Since the city is mostly below sea level, flooding was almost inevitable. Fortunately, we were in an area that was slightly above sea level, so the streets were still easily passable for us.
With a queasy feeling, we got in the car. We had already decided to definitely avoid the coastal road on the way to Myrtle Beach and instead take a detour through the inland. Luckily, the bridge we had to cross for that was still open. There were hardly any vehicles on the road. The wind roared over the streets and the rain poured down in torrents. We crept over the bridge. Finally, we made it. Just get out, away from Charleston. Fortunately, we had a full tank and some provisions with us, because everything was really closed. Even 2-3 hours away from the coast, you could still feel Ian.We arrived in Myrtle Beach in the afternoon. Ian had wreaked havoc here as well. At check-in, we were told that the power had gone out in a large part of the blocks near the beach. With a little assistance from two very nice American women, we carried our luggage to the 7th floor of the hotel, where we had a room with a sea view.
We could hardly believe our eyes when we looked out the window. There was actually a fishing boat drifting towards the beach on the sea. "Who goes fishing, despite hurricane warnings, in this weather?" was our first thought. Shortly afterwards, the boat beached. There was no sign of the crew anywhere. The first tourists quickly approached the stranded behemoth, and then the police appeared and restored order. More and more camera crews showed up. Later we learned that the crew had been rescued by a helicopter the day before, so the boat was drifting on the water without anyone on board. Fortunately, no one was injured.
In the evening, we set out in search of a place to eat, which turned into a little odyssey, because apart from 2-3 fast food chains that were hopelessly overcrowded, nothing was open. Eventually, we did find a Asian restaurant where we really enjoyed the food.
Back in the hotel room, Steffi's mother in Germany informed us that it was probably a good idea not to use the coastal road to Myrtle Beach. It had been partially flooded by a 2-3 meter high wave. Glad that nothing happened to us, we fell asleep.
Windy greetings,
Steffi and Stefan
