Hurricane Matthew

Hurricane Matthew came up the Atlantic Coast and brought Category 2 strength winds and some 19 inches of rain to Hilton Head Island in the early morning hours of October 8, 2016.   Years of planning and preparation, along with the creation of an emergency reserve account, enabled the Town to address the aftermath quickly and effectively, and get the Town back on its feet.  

The Town had “paid it forward” by sending staff and resources to other communities across the southeast that had been hit by disasters, and those staff members brought back important lessons-learned from their experiences.  We had retainer contracts in place with a disaster clean up firm, and they prepositioned resources, having evacuated  with Town staff, so they were ready to come right back into town with us to begin a first push.  We drilled repeatedly with the county, the state and our neighboring municipalities over the years.  Those experiences, and the relationship that had been developed were also crucial to success.  

Over 90% of the roads are privately owned.  FEMA had not previously reimbursed for clearing such roads, but we had built a case, based on public safety and stormwater service responsibilities, that earned the town a waiver.  This also served as a catalyst for FEMA to review their policies in other communities across the country.  We cleared over 2 million cubic yards of debris, at a cost of over $55M, and recovered nearly 90% of those costs from FEMA. 

Our premier fall tourism event, the Concours d’Elegance,  a high-end car show that was scheduled to take place less than a month after the storm, was in danger of being cancelled.  Downed trees covered the show field, a portion of a local golf course.  With the support of the Mayor and Council, and in cooperation with the golf club, and the Concours staff and board, we crafted a plan to tap into our hospitality reserve account to assist in the clean-up of the site.  The Concours d’ Elegance went off without a hitch, and served as a clear statement that the Town was resilient and open for business.