When Hurricane Florence came knocking, United crews barred the door! With tons of sand and hundreds of man-hours, our guys fortified trouble spots across the Pee Dee to ensure that critical roads remained open.
Assuming you have time to prepare for a natural disaster, the first order of business is protecting lives. The minute AFTER the danger passes, recovery is the name of the game. To deliver aid to the victims, as well as daily necessities like milk, bread and gasoline, trucks have to roll! And one of the best ways to get that recovery rolling is to lay a good foundation beforehand.
What we try to avoid…
THE PHONE RINGS…
As Hurricane Florence was approaching the NC/SC border, precise path and strength uncertain, United Infrastructure Group stood ready to assist should the need arise. The phone call came on Saturday, September 15 when the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) contacted UIG’s CEO and President Jim Triplett.
SCDOT had identified three potential trouble spots where the storm could cause significant flooding. These were Highway 378 near Lake City, Highway 378 near Kingsburg, and Highway 501 near Conway.
UIG SWINGS INTO ACTION
Inmates at Wateree Correctional Institute filled sandbags, and the SC National Guard trucked them to the sites. Meanwhile, United crews had:
Placed over 10,000 linear feet of barrier wall at the three sites.
Covered barrier walls in plastic sheeting. Then,
Placed approximately 13,000 sandbags by hand on each side of the barrier.
Additionally, Johnnie Pauline of United Traffic coordinated Traffic Control placement on the Hwy 378 sites.
hurricane florence
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hurricane florence
Of course, these are just the bullet points. This was HARD WORK, y’all!
Installation began on 9/16 and took 5 days across the three sites.
Crews worked Sunday 9/16 for 18 hours at the Lake City site in the nonstop rain.
Crews split 12-hour shifts to load and place the barrier in Conway.
In all, 78 loads were trucked in.
And, as we know, what goes up must come down…
Removal began on 9/27 at Kingsburg
Removal at Lake City took 16 hours on Saturday 9/27.
Conway scheduled for removal Wednesday night, 10/3.
And another 78 loads went out!
HURRICANE FLORENCE EFFECTS BLUNTED BY UIG’S DEDICATED CREWS!
hurricane florence prep crew
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hurricane florence prep crew
hurricane florence prep crew
hurricane florence prep crew
hurricane florence prep crew
At a time when we would ALL rather be at home protecting our families and our property, some fine fellows from United were on the front line helping EVERYBODY. UIG would like to recognize the following:
Travis Campbell
Bobby Edwards and Crew
Keith Ernandez
Chris Fennell
Carroll Powell
Doug Queen
Moses Singleton and Crew
Wayne Whiting
Johnnie Pauline at United Traffic
The guys at Lewis Truck Lines
With dedication and a LOT of hard work – seriously, 13,000 sandbags by hand!? – you gave us all an extra measure of safety and security. Well done!
And if you want to be a part of this dedicated team – UIG is hiring!
Safety is our top priority. Learn more about our safety and environmental practices here
