Ocean Lakes

The much-needed beach renourishment work has reached the beach by Ocean Lakes Family Campground. Crews have been steadily progressing up the beach. Officials cannot pinpoint an exact day when the work will be complete by Ocean Lakes because of factors including weather (not only on the beach but out in the ocean where the boosters operate) and potential mechanical issues. The project pumps sand from offshore onto the beach, where crews use front-end loaders and other heavy equipment to distribute the sand and build up the beach. Here are a few key things to remember as the work is in progress on the beach by Ocean Lakes: Will I still have access to the beach? Yes. Crews are blocking off 1,000-foot sections of beach at a time for the work and anticipate each section will be closed about two or three days.  The beach by Ocean Lakes stretches nearly 5,000 feet, so guests still will have access to the majority of the beach by Ocean Lakes at any...

We’ve fared well from Tropical Storm Irma. Lots of leaves and limbs scattered throughout the campground, but overall we are in good shape. The recently completed beach renourishment was finished just in time to protect us from this storm. “Thank God we got the renourishment when we did,” Lance Thompson, Ocean Lakes General Manager and Vice President, said while standing on the beach Tuesday morning. “It could have been a lot worse.” There’s still some cleanup to do - mainly from downed leaves and limbs - and our team already has jumped on it. Our camper storage lots look good, no flooding or downed trees. DRAINAGE Our team has cleared outfall drainage pipes of sand the storm had pushed into them to get water flowing freely again. Lakes levels already are dropping, and the ponding around some of the lakes such as Sand Dollar Lake also is clearing. Horry County Stormwater crews were on site first thing this morning ensuring that drains are clear. ...

It’s back to business as usual at Ocean Lakes Family Campground on Friday morning as Hurricane Irma’s projected path shifted farther westward away from the Myrtle Beach area. Campground officials continue to closely monitor the powerful storm, which is expected to hit Florida and travel up the state toward Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee. The Myrtle Beach area is no longer in the projected path. “Now it’s just kind of business as usual and wait and see,” Lance Thompson, Ocean Lakes General Manager and Vice President, said Friday morning. The area could get between an inch to 5 inches of rain, and there's a slight chance of some tropical storm force winds late Sunday into Monday, according to the early Friday morning advisory from the National Weather Service in Wilmington, N.C. “A track across Florida would mean less in the way of impacts for this part of the Carolinas, but it is cautioned again that we can’t let our guard down at this time,” according to the ...

Gov. Henry McMaster said Thursday that he likely will issue an evacuation order for coastal South Carolina including the Myrtle Beach area starting Saturday morning as the powerful Hurricane Irma continues heading toward the state. During a news conference Thursday afternoon, McMaster and other state officials urged residents and vacationers to make plans and be prepared for Hurricane Irma, which is expected to bring rain, wind and potential storm surge to coastal South Carolina on Monday and Tuesday. The intensity of the storm’s effects here still is uncertain because it depends on the path the storm ends up taking. McMaster said he is 99 percent sure that he will issue the evacuation order to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday and has another news conference planned for Friday, when he will give the latest on the evacuation plan. “As soon as he does [issue the evacuation order], we will get the word out to everybody,” said Lance Thompson, General Manager and Vice President o...

South Carolina and local officials started making early preparations for potential effects from Hurricane Irma Wednesday as the storm’s path in the Carolinas still was uncertain. The powerful Category 5 storm has local and state officials on alert and urging residents to prepare as a precaution to be ready for whatever Irma might bring. Officials expect to have a better idea of what the storm will do in South Carolina in the next 24 to 48 hours. What this area could experience depends on what turns Irma makes. Lance Thompson, General Manager and Vice President of Ocean Lakes Family Campground, urged guests who have reservations at the campground in the next week to continue to watch the storm’s projected path and stay in touch with us. Follow the Ocean Lakes Facebook page for the latest. “Don’t panic but be prepared,” Thompson said. “At this point, it is just too early to make plans when we don’t have all the information. By Friday, we will know a lot more.” The s...