I've a friend who lives in MB just off the Tidewater course there in Myrtle. He decided to ride this one out, despite a mutual friend of ours trying to get him to evacuate 2 days ago.
Doesn't have a generator, and although they live on higher ground - the likelihood of power outages and no food/water for several days just makes me wish he'd come back to the Northeast for a few weeks to visit with he and his wife's relatives.
When Hugo hit the Charleston area back in '89, my military unit in Ft. Benning, GA was tasked to go down and help provide relief. We were an engineering battalion, armed with chainsaws, bulldozers and dump trucks. We worked for three weeks clearing trees out of yards and roadways, handing out water and food to the locals. The devastation I saw there, at only 20 years of age, was unlike anything I've ever experienced in my life.
Hopefully Florence fizzles into a complete dud. But anyone who has seen what I've seen up close and firsthand would never leave anything to chance. Maybe the storm won't be as bad as the meteorologists predict. I hope so. But at the very minimum, I'm guessing that impact area will not have power for weeks and many will run out of food and water.
What people don't get is that by not evacuating - they're potentially not only endangering their own lives, but also the lives of first responders.
Thankfully it has been downgraded to a Cat II hurricane. But still, this storm is predicted to batter the shoreline there for 2-3 days with heavy rains and 80+ mph winds.
Prayers to all my friends living there.