* Friday, October 18, 2019
This page will be updated as information becomes available.
Latest Update
Today has been sunny and smoke has been limited. When hot spots were exposed, they were sprayed with water before materials were taken off site. Operations have been smooth with 21 trucks this morning and 18 this afternoon.
All DHEC sensors are still reading in the “Good” range for the 24-hour average comparison to the Air Quality Index (AQI).
Please refer to the interactive DHEC map to access real time air quality information from all three DHEC sensors.
| Total Trucks through 10/16 | 4,581 |
| Total Tons through 10/16 | 38,056 |
| Total Trucks as of 3:00 PM 10/17 * | 105 |
| Total Tons as of 3:00 PM 10/17 * | 943 |
| Trucks as of 3:00 PM 10/18 | 105 |
| Tons as of 3:00 PM 10/18 | 865 |
Please note: The number of trucks leaving the site each day varies depending on the weather and firefighting activities. Also, the tons per truck are estimated on days when landfill receipts are not available at the time of this update.
* The final totals for yesterday are not yet available due to WiFi being down at the landfill.
No trucks will run on Saturday due to the forecast of inclement weather. Trucks do not run on Sundays.
Smoke forecast through Monday, October 21, 2019:
Some minimal smoke has been observed from the Able Contracting debris piles in recent days, but air quality monitoring data in the local area of the fire has continued to show 24-hour average particulate concentrations in the "Good" range on the health-based Air Quality Index (AQI) scale. Tropical Storm Nestor will move into the Lowcountry region of South Carolina on Saturday evening. The storm will likely bring two to four inches of rain and wind gusts as high as 40 miles per hour Saturday afternoon through Sunday morning. Wind direction and wind speed will be highly variable during the Saturday through Monday time frame as low pressure passes through the area. On Saturday morning, a light easterly wind will likely move the Able smoke plumes in a generally westerly direction (towards Argent Blvd). On Saturday evening through Sunday morning, strong and gusty winds will transition from southerly to westerly, shifting smoke plumes in generally an easterly direction (towards Okatie Highway) on Sunday morning. On Monday morning, winds will be much lighter and from generally an easterly direction which should shift any smoke plumes in a westerly direction (towards Argent Blvd). If fire flare-ups do occur, any noticeable smoke during the overnight and early morning period will likely dissipate by the late morning hours. However, due to the minimal fire activity recently and continued fire suppression efforts, smoke is not expected to be a problem beyond locations closest to the Able Contracting facility along Schinger Avenue.
The Able Contracting Information Hotline has been established to provide the daily forecast and allow community members to leave messages if they have additional questions. The Smoke Forecast Hotline phone number is 803-898-4262 or 1-800‐204-1842.
For media inquiries: media@dhec.sc.gov.
For other inquiries: ablefire@dhec.sc.gov.
Stay Informed
This page will be updated regularly as information becomes available.