GEORGETOWN, S.C. —  Trannie Moore opened her electric bill and soon decided she would cut back on food and other necessities to pay the $606 charge.

The 69-year-old Georgetown resident has until today Friday to pay the bill, and says there are additional fees tacked on due to late charges.

The extended cold snap has left social service agencies and area residents scrambling to pay power bills as high as $900, according to people The Times contacted.

Those bills began arriving last week, sending some people into a panic over how to pay.

“If these people [at Waccamaw EOC] don’t help me, I will have to make arrangements to pay,” Moore said. “I cut back on my food and stuff, so I can try and pay my bills. I don’t like to complain, I just do the best I can.”

Higher charges

Electric company officials said last month the bills would be higher due to the extremely cold temperatures, causing heat pumps to run continually for days at a time.

Santee Cooper and SCE&G said they broke all-time records for power production on certain days in January.

Santee Electric, Santee Cooper and SCE&G officials said they are helping customers make arrangements to pay their bills. They are also referring them to other agencies that help make the payments.

“Santee Electric does make payment arrangements for customers,” said Adrel Langley, manager of community relations for Santee Electric.

“I do know in this weather that people are going to have a hard time. As much information as we can get out, the better off we’ll all be.”

She said the extremely cold weather that lasted for several weeks caused the bills to spike.

“Some nights were in the teens,’’ she said. “It was in the 20s a couple of weeks straight.”

Sticker shock

Georgetown resident Jack Lancaster is also suffering from sticker shock.

He said his bill for this month is almost $700.

His wife is ill and Lancaster has cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart problems.

Lancaster said he can probably cut back on his breathing medication, in order to pay his bill.

He said he wrote a letter to the governor, Santee Electric and The Georgetown Times, protesting the high charge.

“We’re both retired and living off Social Security and a very small retirement check,’’ he said in his letter. “My latest bill is more than half of my entire Social Security check. I still have to pay for food and medication.”

“I don’t expect people to pay this kind of money,’’ Lancaster said. “How can we come up with it. I’m thinking about cutting back on some of my medication. That’s all I can do.”

Those who wrote on the Georgetown Times Facebook page also expressed their frustration.

Sarah Thelmo Lucas said her bill went from $130 to $220 in one month.

“I didn’t have a washer and dryer,” she said on Facebook. “I only used one light at night, this is crazy.”

Johnny Leon Pope said he is waiting on his tax return to pay his electric bill.

“I'm waiting on my tax refund to come in,’’ he wrote on Facebook. “That is the only way I could pay mine. It is $230 this month, that is double what it usually is.”

Agencies full

The agencies that help those with unpaid utility bills are also struggling to meet the demand.

Employees at the Georgetown Salvation Army said they are seeing more and more people arrive with bills they need help paying.

The agency uses some money from the sale of donated goods to help the public, but those donations are also down, said employee Gloria Evans.

“It started last month,’’ said Evans, who is also dealing with a $467 power bill.

“It was unbelievable. People have come in here and when I see their bill, I stop talking about mine.”

Evans has seen bills for $800 or more that people cannot pay.

“I couldn’t believe it,” she said. They are calling on the phone and they’re coming in, about 30 people a day.

 Employees at Waccamaw EOC said they are also swamped with people needing help with electric bills.

At least 150 people a week are coming into the office in Williamsburg County, and employees in Georgetown said they are also seeing the same increase.

About 1,000 people are on a call-back list, waiting for help with gas and electricity, said  EOC employee Fredina Epps.

“We’re seeing a whole lot more people now,” Epps said. “The highest bill I’ve seen for heating is about $900. People are really in need of help to keep warm in the wintertime.”

She said the funds used to help people with electric bills will probably run out by March.

The agency might not be able to help out until the next money arrives from government funding, she said.

“People are upset and emotional,” she said. “A lot of people are confused.”

By Kelly Marshall Fuller

Kfuller@gtowntimes.com