Guys it's not about the hurricane coming ashore in SC and heading straight to Clemson. It's about the additional rain the storm will inundate the Clemson area with as it passes by to the east and north. The storm will throw off bands of heavy rain from the NE as it passes (hurricanes rotate counter clockwise)
The entire eastcoast has been getting hammered by a slow moving, nearly stationary cold front that's combining with the tropical air. So as soon as the front clears out... the hurricane sort of rides it coat tails straight up the coast where it most likely will make landfall somewhere between VA and Long Island according to the models now.
Bottom line, the inland areas of SC, NE Georgia, Western NC and VA and eastern TN are going to get alot of wrap around rain. The hurricane winds won't be a problem. They are only calling for winds in the 15-20mph category. It's just that the water has no place to go in the hilly, rocky terrain of the Appalachians except for into flooded creeks/rivers and downhill towards the ocean. It only takes 2.5" of rain in those areas over a 3 hour period before flash flooding occurs.
Here is a quick link that shows the rainfall amounts and where the winds will be tropical storm force.
http://www.weather.com/storms/hurricane/video/3-things-you-need-to-know-about-joaquin
.
