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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The latest on the rain storm affecting South Carolina this weekend (all times local):
6:30 p.m.
The National Weather Service says rainfall in one area of downtown Columbia has measured nearly 17 inches of rain in 17 hours.
Meteorologist Chris Rohrbach says a gauge at Gills Creek posted the highest amount for Sunday, resulting in extensive flooding along its banks. He notes the total rainfall for Sunday will be higher, as the rains continue.
Rohrbach says the two-day rainfall total at the Columbia airport has likely broken a record set in August 1949. More than 10 inches had fallen at the airport between 12:01 a.m. Saturday and 5 p.m. Sunday, breaking the previous, 48-hour total of 7.7 inches.
The Congaree River that divides Richland and Lexington counties had reached nearly 32 feet in downtown Columbia as of 6 p.m. Sunday. That's nearly 13 feet above flood stage. Rohrbach says that approaches a record of 33.3 feet set in April 1936.
At least three dams in Richland and Lexington counties burst Sunday.
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5:30 p.m.
Officials are issuing a 12-hour curfew across Richland and Lexington counties.
Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott called it a common-sense curfew. Anyone not facing an emergency situation needs to stay off the roads between 6 p.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday.
He says law enforcement officers "will stop you and make you go home or somewhere else." He stresses that "this is not a time for anybody to be a spectator."
Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin says anyone who doesn't take the flooding seriously risks not only their lives, but the lives of first responders. He says flooding levels are difficult enough to judge in the daytime.
Other cities across the Midlands have also issued curfews. Sumter has announced a curfew of 7 p.m. Sunday to 7 p.m. Monday.
Lexington County authorities are encouraging residents within a quarter-mile of the banks of the Saluda and Congaree rivers to evacuate, due to concerns about the impact of SCE&G releasing more water from the Lake Murray Dam.
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2:50 p.m.
The City of Columbia is telling all 375,000 of its water customers to boil their water before drinking it.
The city issued the boil water advisory Sunday afternoon after massive flooding caused a number of water line breaks and the rising water was threatening operations at Columbia's downtown water treatment plant.
Officials say they are trying to fix the breaks and keep the treatment plant online, but they don't know when they will be able to lift the advisory, which affects customers in the city of Columbia as well as Richland and Lexington counties.
Authorities say boil water for at least a minute before drinking or cooking.
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2:04 p.m.
Dozens of people have been forced from their homes after a flash flood sent the waters of Gills Creek in Columbia rising 12 feet in 12 hours. An estimated 40 homes in the neighborhood next to the creek have been flooded.
Jeff Whalen says he got a call from a neighbor telling him to evacuate about 6:15 a.m. on Sunday. At that time the water was a foot below his front door. By the time he got out, the water was a foot deep in the house.
By early afternoon, the flood was so extensive the nearest he could get to his house was a block and a half away. Whalen has lived in the house for 18 years and said he has never seen the creek flood like that.
Forecasters say almost 19 inches of rain fell in the area since the storm began.
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1:30 p.m.
State officials have closed two major interstate bridges over the Broad River in Columbia.
The Interstate 20 and Interstate 126 bridges over the Broad River were closed Sunday afternoon. Authorities did not know when they would be reopened.
Traffic cameras showed the river nearing the road deck on the I-20 bridge, with debris flowing swiftly underneath.
Department of Transportation traffic counts show about 100,000 vehicles cross the I-20 bridge every day, and an additional 70,000 vehicles use the I-126 bridge.
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1:05 p.m.
State Rep. Kirkman Finlay says the state did not properly plan for the possibility of historic flooding, even though forecasters warned of the possibility days in advance.
Finlay said he is stunned Gov. Nikki Haley hasn't spoken publically since huge areas of Columbia began flooding overnight Sunday.
Finlay is also a Republican whose district includes areas near Gills Creek, where a Richland County weather station recorded 18.39 inches of rain. The creek rose from 5 feet to 17 feet in 12 hours. The previous record was 9.43 feet.
Hundreds of businesses, homes and apartments flooded, and dozens of boats fanned out to rescue trapped people.
Finlay hasn't heard of injuries or fatalities, but says the hardest hit areas have not been searched yet. He says rescuers need more boats.
Finlay says firefighters and other first responders have been heroic despite the poor planning by other officials.
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12:40 p.m.
Columbia Fire Chief Aubrey Jenkins says he has lost track of how many rescues his 140 firefighters have done as flood waters rise across Richland County.
Jenkins says there is bad flooding around the entire county that includes Columbia. It started early Sunday morning as more than 10 inches of rain fell across the area.
Jenkins says his firefighters have seen any serious injuries or fatalities. But he says they also haven't gotten to all the flooded areas.
The fire department lost contact for about 40 minutes with a firefighter performing rescues, but Jenkins says he was found and is safe.
All firefighters available are working.
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12:15 p.m.
The state Department of Transportation says at least 211 state roads and 43 bridges across South Carolina are closed due to historic flooding.
The state Emergency Management Division says a 74-mile stretch of Interstate 95 is also closed. That's between Interstate 20 in Florence and Interstate 26 near Harleyville.
Officials are urging motorists to stay off roads that aren't closed.
Transportation Secretary Christy Hall says the average vehicle can be swept away in as little as 12 inches of moving water and stalled out in as little as two feet of water.
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12 p.m.
Charleston Mayor Joseph. P. Riley says the worst of the storm seems to have passed for the Charleston area.
Riley, mayor for 40 years, says he's never seen such flooding as in recent days in Charleston.
Riley had a briefing with weather forecasters Sunday morning and says the area is only supposed to receive about an inch to 1.5 inches of rain during the next day or so.
He says when low tide comes on Sunday night it will allow some of the flood waters to recede. And he expects Charleston city offices will be operating normally on Monday.
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10:45 a.m.
Along South Carolina's coast, officials in Georgetown are not letting people into the city because of flooding in the waterfront historic district. Officials report several feet of water on the roads in some places.
Meanwhile police in North Charleston say that say that flooding that occurred overnight Saturday resulted in a number of people being evacuated from homes. Two mobile home parks in the city were evacuated because of rising flood waters forcing crews to cut off the electricity to the homes.
As heavy thunderstorms moved through the area Saturday night, Charleston County 911 operators received 300 calls for assistance in a two-hour period. And the county rescue squad responded to almost 100 calls Saturday night and early Sunday.
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10:15 a.m.
The National Weather Service says historic rainfalls have pummeled large swaths of South Carolina.
The Midlands were hardest hit overnight, with up to 14 inches of rain dumped on parts of Richland County since midnight Saturday. Areas of the county approached a two-day total of 18 inches.
Creeks and ponds are overflowing. For example, Gills Creek in downtown Columbia exceeds 17 feet — more than 10 feet higher than flood stage — causing heavy flooding.
Water is running over dams in the Columbia-area towns of Arcadia Lakes and Forest Lake, and the dam at Old Mill Pond in Lexington has collapsed.
Hydrologist Leonard Vaughan says it's one of the worst rain events South Carolina has seen. Vaughan says some areas could receive up to six additional inches of rain.
The state Department of Public Safety says officers responded to 323 accidents between 6 p.m. Saturday and 6 a.m. Sunday. The agency says it has cleared 138 trees in roadways and helped 140 motorists.
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10:15 a.m.
The most dramatic multi-day totals have been along South Carolina's coast.
Hydrologist Leonard Vaughan said Sunday that rainfall totals near Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant have topped 24 inches since Friday morning, while Kiawah Island has seen more than 18 inches. More than 14 inches had fallen in downtown Charleston as of 9 a.m. Sunday.
Meteorologist Peter Mohlin with the National Weather Service in Charleston said that while the rain had diminished in Charleston Sunday morning, there's a chance of more showers later in the day. "The peak is past, that's for sure, but there will still be periods of heavy rain that will continue into tonight."
The Upstate has not received as much rain. Greenville has received seven inches of rain over the last three days.
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9:10 a.m.
Parts of at least three interstates in South Carolina are closed because of flooding.
The South Carolina Department of Transportation reports that Interstate 77 is closed just south of Interstate 20 near Columbia.
The DOT says I-20 is closed just west of I-77 in Columbia.
DOT cameras in both places show water over all lanes of the highway.
Officials have also closed Interstate 95 about 40 miles south of Florence.
Troopers are urging everyone in South Carolina to stay off the roads unless they need to find emergency shelter.
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9 a.m.
South Carolina's capital city is getting hit hard by the dangerous rainstorm drenching the Southeast.
The Columbia, South Carolina, police department says officers and fire fighters are rescuing stranded motorists around the state's capital city. Fire officials said Sunday morning that they had made more than 50 swift-water rescues, and they're responding to dozens more calls for help.
The police department said there are too many road closures in the area to name and that emergency dispatchers are working hard to keep up with the call volume.
Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin sent a message on Twitter asking residents to: "Please, please stay off of the roads!"
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8:45 a.m.
South Carolina emergency management officials are urging people to stay off the roads because of flooding around the state.
Heavy rains, perhaps as much as a foot in coastal areas, are forecast through Sunday.
The state Emergency Management Division sent out a statewide alert Sunday asking residents to stay where they are unless their homes are in danger of flooding. They say there have been water rescues around the state.
State transportation officials say there are nearly 100 state-maintained roads closed around the state. Nearly 30,000 customers are without power.
Flash flood warnings, meaning flooding is imminent or occurring, have been issued through midday Sunday for an area stretching 150 miles from Charleston to the Midlands west of Columbia. Flash flood watches remain in effect into Monday.
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8:05 a.m.
The downtown Charleston peninsula, which includes the city's historic district, has been reopened on a limited basis. City officials closed the area to incoming traffic on Saturday because of flooding from heavy rains.
Residents and business owners are again being allowed in as are public safety workers and medical workers. Those who want to enter the downtown area must show proper identification.
Others, including tourists and those who simply might want to look at storm damage, are being blocked from entering by police at entrances to the peninsula. City officials reported early Sunday that more than 60 streets and intersections remain closed because of high water and more rain is expected through the day.
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