Parts of central South Carolina received as much as 20 inches of rain since Friday. Enough water fell on parts of Spartanburg that one Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep dealership wrote off about 150 vehicles that were swept off by floodwaters.
Next door in Greer, SC, the BMW Plant Spartanburg’s production lines kept running through the storm, producing X3, X4, X5, and X6 vehicles. However, the factory was impacted by rain elsewhere in the state.
The Congaree River at Columbia, SC rose ten feet in twelve hours, forcing rail lines to stop operating. Since most of BMW Plant Spartanburg’s production is shipped to the Port of Charleston by rail, transfer of BMWs out of Plant Spartanburg was delayed.
“BMW will work closely with state authorities to assess alternative options, including movement by truck to the Port of Charleston,” said BMW spokesperson Sky Foster.
Daimler’s plant near Charleston, SC, where the company produces Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans, was closed on Monday because of road and school closures. The plant itself was not flooded, and Daimler Vans managers expected to be operational again on Tuesday.
One side effect of the flooding is that new-car dealers expect the business that they lost during the storm will pick back up as flooded car owners look to replace their totaled rides. General Manager Steven Rhoads of Fred Anderson Toyota in Charleston pointed out, “There are a lot of flooded cars around here,” noting parking lots in the area with cars almost totally submerged.
The BMW CCA Foundation, which has its headquarters, library, archives, and fledgling car collection in its building adjacent to the BMW Performance Center in Greer, SC, experienced a little water trying to get in, but staff reacted quickly to avoid any damage.—Scott Blazey
[Photos courtesy of John Irwin/Reuters and WSPA.]
