October 15, 2015 by The Sumter Item

INSIDE: Continental donates to American Red Cross A2 THE CLARENDON SUN

Open for business SERVING SOUTH CAROLINA SINCE OCTOBER 15, 1894

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2015

75 CENTS

Manning restaurants feed first responders, others during flood

Clarendon Master of Equity sale

City, County on track to meet FEMA requirements BY ADRIENNE SARVIS adrienne@theitem.com A Federal Emergency Management Agency Preliminary Damage Assessment team member told City of Sumter and Sumter County officials they meet the qualifications to receive FEMA assistance for financial losses from the re-

cent flood at a meeting Wednesday. FEMA assistance will include payment for damages, losses and personnel overtime. Representatives from departments within the governing bodies detailed some of their losses. Officers started evacuating

people from flooded areas at daylight on Sunday, Oct. 4, said Sumter Police Chief Russell Roark III. He said officers evacuated about 325 people in total and continue to patrol evacuated areas to deter looting. He said the department lost seven vehicles, worth a combined value of $280,000, and

the back up communication equipment that was stored at the Sumter Fire Department Training Facility. Roark said current estimates for losses include approximately $40,000 for equipment, not including the reserve communication equipment; and more than $110,000 for personnel working over-

time. Sumter Fire Chief Karl Ford said estimates for the department’s losses and purchases since the flood, that include damages to the training center and the loss of equipment in the building, is close to $400,000.

SEE FEMA, PAGE A12

City clearing debris PHOTO PROVIDED

Sr. Cpl. Warren Davis, left, signed up Doretha Anderson, center, and her husband, Walter (not pictured), up for the city’s CheckMate program, after they were displaced by flooding. Robert Anderson, right, joined his mother, saying he and other family members are grateful for the mayor and city’s help.

Rescued couple grateful for community BY TONYIA MCGIRT Special to The Sumter Item

$9,804, according to the College Board. The Clinton plan is bound to cost more than the $35 billion per year during 10 years projected by her campaign. This is because more students would probably switch to public universities on the potential to graduate without debt, raising costs for the government and potentially leaving many modestly endowed private institutions in the lurch. The potential of a debt-free education would also depend on states providing reliable money streams and controlling costs — both major sources of uncertainty. But the Clinton and Sanders plans would also expose a sharp

Doretha, 83, and Walter Anderson, 84, lived in their Melvin Avenue home in Sumter County for 22 years. That is until the floodwaters began to rise the morning of Oct. 4. “I looked out the window and it looked like Lake Murray,” said their granddaughter, Theronda Wilson, who happened to be staying with them at the time and alerted them to the increasing need to leave. She called emergency responders, and explained the situation. Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, Sumter Fire and Rescue and Sumter Emergency Medical Service arrived at the home and helped with the rescue. Wilson’s grandfather, who is bedridden, was taken out on an elevated stretcher, while her grandmother was rescued by boat. They were only able to bring a few things with them, and the home is no longer livable, Doretha Anderson said. “These worldly things we shouldn’t treasure, but we do treasure them,” she said while dabbing tears as she talked about the things they had to leave behind, including her favorite hats that she would wear to church. The couple first stayed at a shelter at Tuomey Regional Medical Center and a shelter that could provide for Walter’s health needs before family members were able to place them in a local hotel. Now, they are getting situated in a home in the city. However, resources for the older couple remained a concern for family members near and far. “I wrote a letter to the mayor,” said daughter, Felicia Jones, who lives in Maryland. “He responded almost immediately.”

SEE FACT CHECK, PAGE A12

SEE COUPLE, PAGE A12

KEITH GEDAMKE / THE SUMTER ITEM

Sammy Liles and Dillon Blevins, employees of Daniel’s Tree Service from Taylors sort through a debris pile Wednesday afternoon on Sassafras Street.

Process will take several weeks; see A5 for sorting guide FROM STAFF REPORTS Contractors have started picking up flood debris and garbage in the City of Sumter and Sumter County, according to a release from the City of Sumter. The service is expected to take

some several weeks to complete, as contractors will only be able to pick up one type of debris at a time, the release said. Garbage trucks will make several passes to each residence in order to pick up all debris.

The release said the city is asking residents to have patience and to not try to dispose of the garbage on their own, as not only is this debris required to be disposed of separately, but the city’s landfills cannot hold the extra debris.

To expedite the garbage pickup process, the release said residents are still encouraged to separate piles into six types of garbage: regular household, construction debris,

SEE DEBRIS, PAGE A5

In Democratic debate, when ‘free’ isn’t free FACT CHECK

An occasional look at political claims that take shortcuts with the facts or don’t tell the full story. WASHINGTON (AP) — When does “free” cost a lot of money? It’s when presidential contenders Hillary Rodham Clinton and Bernie Sanders pitch plans for free college tuition, playing down the cost to taxpayers and brushing past assorted other perils to the education system, as happened in the Democratic debate. A look at some of the claims Tuesday night and how they compare with the facts: CLINTON: “My plan would enable anyone to go to a public college or university tuition-free. You would not

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have to borrow money for tuition.” SANDERS: “Make every public college and university in this country tuition-free.” THE FACTS: Free for the students, but someone has to pay. Clinton and Sanders both would shift more college costs onto taxpayers and away from parents and students. Sanders’ plan would cover tuition and fees at public universities — a $70 billion annual expense with the federal government picking up two-thirds of that tab by taxing trades in the financial markets. Students would still be on the hook for room and board costs that average

DEATHS, B4

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William Dixon Sr. Morrell Driggers Tina H. VanValkenburgh Azalee D. Johnson Jocelyn Butler

WEATHER, A14

INSIDE

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY

2 SECTIONS, 20 PAGES VOL. 120, NO. 306

Sunny and mild today with no chance of rain. Clear and cool tonight. HIGH 76, LOW 53

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