Mike Robinson says Rock Hill is still cleaning up damage from Helene as they prepare for snow to hit.
ROCK HILL, S.C. — With a winter storm projected to hit the Carolinas, restoration businesses are already seeing an influx of calls — on top of an already busy Helene cleanup.
Mike Robinson has done repairs in Rock Hill his whole life.
“You just need to be prepared for what you can’t be prepared for,” Robinson said. “The South’s weather is the most unpredictable thing that you will ever be upon.”
He says this past year was especially unpredictable, between hail in April and Hurricane Helene.
He said he’s already been out on a few calls to fix frozen pipes. On one of his more recent ones, he also helped clean up a tree that had fallen after the hurricane.
“Our tree canopy is still, and people don’t believe this, is still damaged. Your big trees is damaged to this day from Hurricane Hugo,” Robinson said. “When a tree breaks its roots, it takes many, many, many years to grow them back.”
He says that’s why you have to be prepared for anything.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” Robinson said. “A drip of water is your best friend. Don’t have it running. Just a drip.”
If you can’t afford an expert like him, he says there’s lots you can do to protect your home from damage. For example, wrapping pipes with newspaper or, if you’re in a mobile home, put a board up to cover the underside of your home from the elements.
He encourages everyone to check that their generators work before the power goes out. He says many of the hardware stores in the area have already seen an influx of people, and it may take crews like him longer to get to emergency calls in a storm.
