After just 7 hours, Hurricane Dorian lane reversals on Hilton Head bridges end
Lane reversals on U.S. 278 on Hilton Head Island in anticipation of Hurricane Dorian have ended, according to local and state law enforcement officials.
One lane of eastbound traffic was switched to westbound Monday just before noon. The lane reversals ended just after 7 p.m. Monday because “local traffic appeared to be under control,” Lance Cpl. Gary Miller with the S.C. Highway Patrol.
Traffic is now free-flowing to and from the island.
Miller said the governor can reinstate the lane reversals if needed, but “right now it’s going to stay as is.” He said it’s common to stop lane reversals because most evacuees do not leave at night.
Traffic on the Hilton Head bridges appeared light Tuesday morning.
There were two crashes in the corridor with lane reversals Monday, Miller said. Both were minor collisions.
Although traffic was still allowed to flow freely throughout Beaufort County as of Tuesday morning, Sheriff P.J. Tanner said “that could changed based on storm conditions.”
He encouraged residents who hadn’t evacuated yet to do so.
Lane reversals were still in effect in other parts of South Carolina on Tuesday morning, including on I-26 and I-16.
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Will the bridges close?
The bridges to the island are not closed, and one lane remained open inbound to the island throughout Monday’s reversals.
Bridges and causeways, such as the Hilton Head Island bridges, would likely close with the onset of tropical storm-force winds, said Sheriff’s Office Lt. Col. Neil Baxley, commander of the Emergency Management Division. He said Monday that those winds could start Wednesday morning.
“Once tropical storm-force winds start blowing across the Hilton Head Island bridges, it is absolutely unsafe to cross those bridges, and we may have to barricade those bridges at that point,” Baxley said.
Hilton Head Island Mayor John McCann told residents Monday morning that they needed to leave. During a morning press conference held by the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, McCann noted wryly: “The weather is not going to turn out well.”
As of Tuesday, Hurricane Dorian was sitting over the Bahamas and moving at an agonizingly slow speed of 1 mph, Dixon said. The damage to the island nation is “catastrophic.”
The swing bridges in the county will be closed to marine traffic beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Baxley said, but vehicles will still be able to travel across the bridges.
This story was originally published September 3, 2019 at 9:25 AM.
