Columbia business owners ready the sandbags for possible flooding

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - In Columbia, where several of the city's big business districts regularly find themselves underwater even in the slightest summer rain shower, business owners are preparing for the potential of these floods.

Sandbags are already piled high in some areas in preparation. At Carolina Cafe, they've been working to make sure the sandbags are ready to go. The plan is to stack them four feet high. They bought 1,200 pounds of sand for this. They're also planning to line the doors and windows with plastic—and once they do that nobody will be able to get in or out—essentially boarding the place up.

Next door, Tio's has also already laid down the plastic and the sandbags as well.

Business owners here say the biggest concern for them is not knowing exactly how much rain could accumulate.

"That's the real problem is nobody knows, nobody has anything to compare this to. We're all just trying to work together, everybody on this block we're teaming up and batting down the hatches," Lauren Schlueter, owner of Carolina Cafe, said.

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