Water Damage Restoration in Huger, SC

HUGER, S.C. (WCSC) - With just over a hundred homes expected to be built in Huger, some residents worry the lack of proper infrastructure will just be one of the factors that will cost the area its small, hometown feel.

Berkeley County says these homes are coming along Cainhoy Road near Cainhoy Elementary School. Construction has already been approved for the Royal Cokeland development, which will be 49 homes, and the county is still in the stages of approval for the French Quarter Preserve, which will be 57 homes.

“It’s a rural community and we would like to see it stay that way,” lifelong Huger resident Richard Coen said.

Another Huger native, Vincent Holback, and Coen say they have watched Cainhoy Road become a hazard over the years. Cainhoy Road had over 200 collisions from 2011 to 2020, according to the State Department of Public Safety.

The agency has not yet responded to a request for more up-to-date accident information.

“We see growth coming that we aren’t able to sustain because of the infrastructure not being developed along with the growth,” Holback said.

Holback says the lack of proper infrastructure in this area to keep up with the homes is the top concern. He says he sees constant traffic coming from the Nucor Steel production company and Cainhoy Elementary during rush hour.

“There are senior citizens here that drove up and down this road all their lives,” Holback said. “And some of them are afraid to leave home after 3 o’clock in the evening because of the traffic and the speed of the traffic.”

Although the county says these subdivisions will have at least 20% of their area dedicated to wetlands, conservation is also at the forefront of concern.

Coen says the growth does not need to take over.

“It’s going to destroy an area that’s so sensitive and is such an incredible asset for Berkeley County,” Coen said.

Although there’s no stopping what’s already under construction, the two say they just want the county to look out for the ones who already live here.

“I have nothing against growth as long as you bring the growth and do the infrastructure along with the growth,” Holback said.

Coen praises Berkeley County for prioritizing greenspace as part of their 1% sales tax.

“They’re very receptive to all of the efforts regarding the private lands, conservation easements, property rights,” Coen said. “But the property rights are the people who live here.”

Berkeley County public information officer, Jenna-ley Jamison, provided this statement in response to the concerns:

The County routinely works with the state to help improve various roadways, intersections and other transportation infrastructure around the County. The County passed a moratorium on development earlier this year. Also, the 2022 One Cent Sales Tax Referendum that was passed in November 2022 has a Greenbelt Preservation component which addresses setting aside property, easements, natural resources, agricultural, landscaping and protecting scenic corridors while improving road infrastructure.

In addition, with Cainhoy Road being state-maintained, the South Carolina Department of Transportation is responsible for the infrastructure. They have not provided a statement.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

HUGER S.C. (WCSC) - People that live in the Huger-Wando community are voicing their concerns to city leaders about everything from transportation to affordable housing.

Almost 200 people came to a community meeting at Cainhoy Elementary on Thursday. They say they feel overlooked when it comes to decisions regarding their area.

Carl Anderson, S.C. House of Representatives District 103, says he is new to representing the Huger-Wando area and wants their requests to be fulfilled.

“Berkeley County has several pots of money that we just hope would be shared across Berkeley County with every area of Berkeley County, but this area, as they said to me, they feel like they have been overlooked,” Anderson said. “So, I feel like this area needs a little bit more attention than the other areas.”

At the meeting, representatives from Berkeley County, the state’s health department and department of transportation, just to name a few, answered questions from the public.

“The funds that have come in from the federal government during this pandemic and what is going to be done with it,” Anderson said. “And we heard that only a fraction of those funds were spent. So, they want to be included in the funds that the county has so that things can get done in this area.”

Another issue brought up was the repaving of certain roads, the cost of affordable housing and overall severity of sewage and drainage problems.

One community member, Cynthia Lawrence, says she wished that the agencies could have gone into more detail with their answers.

“Well, I think the public is still a little leery about the answers that they received tonight from the agencies that were here,” Lawrence said. “We needed to go a little deeper and it just wasn’t enough time.”

Although the community members say they wish they had more time, other county and school representatives say they can answer more in-depth questions when contacted directly.

The hope is to have another meeting sometime in October, but no date has been set as of now. The organizer’s plans include inviting Berkeley County Water and Sewer so they can solve more of the sewage issues.

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About $100,000 has been allocated to the creation of Huger Park in Carolina Forest, and actual progress should begin towards the end of the year.

Director of Horry County Parks and Recreation Brent Taylor says the revenue, which comes from Horry County funds, “just hasn’t come in,” but he expects it to do so in the fall.

Taylor says the funding for Huger Park “is being secured, and we are in the preliminary design stage.”

The park will be created on five acres donated by land owner Joe Garrell, and will be centered around 10 oak trees, some of which have been there as long as 300 years, Garrell says.

“Myrtle Beach has very little historical significance they can hang their hats on, but this is one of them,” Garrell says about the proposed park.

“Those trees look like a cathedral, and only God could have made them the way He did.”

Taylor agrees that the historical significance of Huger Park will be unique.

He says because of development in the area, a lot of oak trees have been cut down.

“This will preserve those 10 nice oak trees,” he says, adding that Huger Park will also benefit the Carolina Forest area in “tying that together so people can see why the Revolutionary War was fought.

“Anytime you can preserve beautiful trees and learn something about the area, it’s a good combination,” Taylor says.

Garrell explains that the land is part of 1,000 acres given to Revolutionary War hero Isaac Huger by the king of England in the latter part of the 1700s.

“Then the king gave Huger another 1,000 acres that went all the way to the ocean, and that land is now the city of Myrtle Beach,” Garrell says.

He adds that it’s significant that the trees on Horry County’s seal are oak trees. “They’re kind of a mascot,” he says about the oaks. “The park would be an iconic landmark for Horry County.”

Garrell says that while Huger Park will be “a direct tie back to the Revolutionary War and England, that’s not nearly as important as that strand of trees that are magnificent.

“Those trees are the most important thing, and the historical part is connected to them,” he says.

Huger Park, which will be across from an entrance to The Farm subdivision, will include a picnic area and flags symbolizing the original 13 colonies.

Just 45 minutes outside of Charleston, a small town with a population of roughly 3,379 people lies in the midst of Berkeley County.

Huger is the hometown of Dr. Anthony Williams and Dr. Jessica Berry, both of whom were recently named to South Carolina State University’s Top 40 under 40 inaugural class.

The award was designed to honor alumni that have made strides to further their careers and impact their communities.

Growing up in Huger, Berry was a fluent native Gullah Geechee speaker. She attended Cainhoy Elementary and Middle School, the same school that Williams would attend only a few years later.

“Huger is extremely rural, people don’t really get to see a whole lot outside of that space there,” Berry said.

Berry went on to graduate from Hanahan High school and Williams at Timberland High School.

“At Timberland High School, I wasn’t the ideal student,” Williams said. “I didn’t have a 4.0 GPA, I didn’t have all A’s, I wasn’t in the honor classes. But my school counselor at the time, who is also an SC State graduate, Mr. Hilton, for some reason saw a lot in me. He saw way more in me then I saw in myself.”

Williams attended South Carolina State University, located in Orangeburg, in the fall after high school graduation. Four years later, he obtained a bachelor’s degree in child development.

Inspired by his own experiences with his school counselor back at Timberland High, Williams began working toward his master’s in school counseling.

“I had to be a school counselor because I wanted to pay it forward, Williams said. “I would not be here if it wasn’t for my own school counselor.”

Two and a half years later, in 2017, Williams graduated once again from SC State University with an administration degree. For a final time in July 2020, Williams completed his doctoral degree at SC State and since has been serving as an assistant principal at Sumter High School.

Today, Williams uses his personal experience of growing up in Huger as a testimony to what students can become despite any current circumstances.

“Being from that community, I understand there’s a lot of difficult situations and that circumstances aren’t always ideal,” Williams said. “Sometimes when you’re in it, you can’t see out of it. When I was a school counselor I used to say, ‘your grades are your get-out. Continue to pour into your school work and you will get out. If you want to be a lawyer or a doctor or a dentist or a principal, it is possible.’ I could have been a principal with just my master’s degree but my doctoral degree is to show the kids that you can do it. It’s not that far fetched. Go get it,” Williams said.

After completing her undergraduate degree at Winthrop University, Berry began pursuing her master’s at SC State University. It was during this time that her passion for educating the next generation on cultural biases that exist and advocating for people who don’t speak mainstream English was first sparked.

After receiving her doctoral degree from Louisiana State University, Berry returned to the state to serve closer to home.

Today, Berry continues to partner with school districts promoting this advocacy and even writing a book titled “The little Gullah Geechee: A Guide for the Come Ya (2019),” in an ambition to educate others on the Gullah Geechee culture.

Since 2017, Berry has served as an assistant professor with SC State in the speech pathology department.

Growing up unsure if she would ever have the opportunity to obtain a degree as grandiose as her own, she now leads the same department where she was once a student.

“My hope is that there’s another little girl in my area who sees me get this award and serve the community and educate people about who we are as Gullah Geechee and decide that I am worth it,” Berry said.

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"This is the first day of cleanup," said Bill Cahill.

Water levels had gone down significantly, allowing people to get an idea of just home much they lost.

"I'm thinking $150,000," said Cahill.

Cahill and his family were picking up pieces from the storm at a home he built more than 20 years ago.

On Saturday night, it was that home where many found refuge.

"We were pulling people from all the houses around the neighborhood," said Cahill. "911 was calling us. Tommy and Bud down the road had boats and DNR couldn't get in here. So, they were bringing the people here to the porch."

More than 20 people packed on Cahill's porch. Soon, the US Coast Guard sent a helicopter to help.

Cahill, now a neighborhood hero, had only one thing on his mind.

"We were just trying to make sure everybody stayed safe," said Cahill. "At that point they're safe and you just worry about the damage later."

Thankful everyone was safe, his family now begins tackling those damages.

Recovery was seen around Huger.Just down the street, on Charity Church Road, Carrie Bennett was dragging her carpet to the road.She was still in disbelief at what she saw during the storm.

"I mean the water was coming up across the highway," said Bennett. "You couldn't walk to your mailbox without getting wet up."

The welcome sign at French Quarter Creek still had water at its foot, but much less compared to what the was seen days ago.The message on the sign reads "Thanks for visiting, please drive safely." It's a message of care that's still evident in the hearts of the people in Huger.

"I don't think you can ever underestimate things," said Cahill.

"God does everything for a reason," said Bennett. "It could be a blessing, and who knows. I'm just going to thank him anyways in advance."

The American Red Cross was also in Huger, assisting with damage assessments. For help with that in Charleston, call : 843-764-2323 x321

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