Hurricane Helene to dump heavy rains across Upstate

Heavy rains from Helene, which has been upgraded from a Tropical Storm to a Category 3 Hurricane, are expected to impact the Upstate beginning Thursday.

A tropical storm watch and flood watch have been issued for the Upstate, including Laurens County.

The storm is expected to dump 4-6 inches of rain on Laurens County and as much as 6-8 inches in neighboring Greenville County. Anderson, Greenwood and Spartanburg counties are also predicted to get 4-6 inches of rain.

The storm is expected to bring with it winds of up to 45 m.p.h. in some areas.

According to the National Weather Service, flash flooding could occur along with the widespread heavy rainfall.

“This is a very large storm, and residents are urged not to focus on the ‘cone’ as impacts will extend well beyond the shaded cone area (on weather maps),” the NWS said on its social media.

The storm has already affected scheduling for events in the county this weekend.

Laurens District 55 High School has moved its scheduled home game with Lexington from Friday to Wednesday with a kickoff set for 7 p.m.

LDHS homecoming festivities also initially scheduled for Friday have been moved to Oct. 4.

Both Clinton and Laurens Academy also have Homecoming games scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday. Officials from both schools said they are monitoring the weather and weighing their options.

Clinton and LDHS announced the postponement of tennis and volleyball matches this week.

The NWS warned of the potential for scattered power outages as well as the increased chance of landslides in the mountains.

The large storm is expected to come ashore on the northeastern Gulf Coast of Florida Thursday.