CHARLESTON, S.C. — Life threatening rains have hammered South Carolina this past weekend claiming five lives.

“We are at a 1,000-year level of rain,” Governor Nikki Haley said on Sunday night, in reference to the dangerous situation this weather has become.

A “thousand-year rainfall” means that the amount of rainfall in South Carolina has a 1-in-1,000 chance of happening in any given year, according to CNN meteorologist Taylor Ward. Certain areas of South Carolina have never seen this amount of rain. In some areas of the state, as much as 24 inches of rain have fallen in a single weekend.

“Flash flood warnings have been issued and many areas that received a large amount of rainfall 24 hours ago are being hit hard again,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Steven Pfaff. “This is an extremely dangerous situation.”

The governor has told South Carolina citizens to stay off the roads until the storm is through.

“Regardless of where you are in the state, stay home. Stay off the roadways.”

To further ensure citizens stay safe, Haley closed all interstates in and around the capital city.

“This is an incident we’ve never dealt with before,” she said.

Source: CNN