Dear Friends,

I hope this finds you well. Hurricane Matthew was a devastating storm, and we must now come together as a state to recover. I want to thank our first responders and emergency workers, who have done and continue to do an amazing job in their efforts to keep us safe.

Over the past two days, I have visited areas that were heavily affected by Hurricane Matthew. Yesterday I traveled with the Coast Guard from upper Charleston County to the other side of Edisto Beach, and today we visited Horry and Beaufort Counties. 

While parts of our state are beginning to recover from the storm, we must also stay vigilant as there are still some dangers ahead of us. Multiple rivers have yet to crest, and we are seeing communities throughout the Pee Dee greatly affected by these floodwaters. Many homes along the coast are still without power. I encourage everyone to please follow the directions of local authorities as they return to their homes. For those seeking additional information, I have posted links on my website that I thought might be helpful to those directly affected by the storm.

Also, please be wary of scammers. Many South Carolinians received email updates about power outages - this is a phishing scam. If you don't know the email address, don't click it! Additionally, there have been reports that people are posing as FEMA agents.  Don’t just assume someone works for FEMA, please ask for credentials!

Governor Haley has made the official request for disaster assistance, and my office will work with FEMA as we learn what areas of the state are eligible for assistance.As always, please feel free to contact my office if you need assistance. We will do the best to help in any way that we can. 

God Bless our state; my prayers are with those who lost loved ones during the storm, and those who have lost their homes. We will rebuild stronger. We are South Carolina, and nothing can keep us down for long. 

Sincerely,

Tim