dprovenzanosc

August 5, 2023

Horses Shot in St. George

Recent articles in The Eagle-Record and The Post and Courier report malicious animal shootings at the St. George Shangri-La Sanctuary which resulted in the death of at least one horse and maiming and injury of several others. The Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office seems to have tracked down a primary suspect which sadly is an 11-year-old child who lives in the area.

The Shangri-La Sanctuary is supposed to be a safe place for rescued animals. Unfortunately in this case animals were harmed and maimed with no apparent regard for their wellbeing. It is unclear at this time how law enforcement will deal with the shooter as they are a juvenile. But it’s obvious, significant damage was done to the animals of the sanctuary. With one horse shot eight times, this clearly was not a case of random stray bullets from target shooting. While target shooting is generally accepted and common in our rural Dorchester area, the shooting of other’s animals is not.

If you would like to reach out or offer comfort and support to the Shangri-La Sanctuary, you can visit their website (https://www.shangrilasanctuarysc.com/) or email them at slsanctuarysc@gmail.com.

July 28, 2023

Dorchester County Sheriff’s to Host National Night Out

The Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office announced they are inviting residents to the National Night Out, an evening of camaraderie and fun to foster stronger relationships between law enforcement and the community. The Sheriff’s Office will host two events on August 1 from 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM at Ashley River Park (200 Renken Rd., Summerville) and Davis-Bailey Park (5190 E Jim Bilton Blvd., St George). These events will consist of the following highlights:

Community Meet and Greet: Connect with Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office law enforcement officers and first responders.

Law Enforcement Demonstrations: Gain valuable insights into safety techniques and crime prevention strategies through interactive demonstrations by our experienced law enforcement personnel. These include K9 demonstrations, Aviation demonstrations, and Crime Scene demonstrations.

Kids Activities: Join first responders for games of corn hole, kickball, volleyball, spike ball, and basketball (at Davis-Bailey Park).

Food and Refreshments: Hotdogs and drinks will be available free of charge.

These events are excellent opportunities to connect with your fellow neighbors, local law enforcement, and other first responders in a relaxed and enjoyable setting.

May 30, 2023July 28, 2023

Hurricane Preparedness Expo at Ashley River Park

With the 2023 Hurricane Season ready to start, Dorchester County is encouraging residents to attend the Hurricane Preparedness Expo at Ashley River Park. The expo is scheduled for Saturday. June 3, 2023 and is scheduled to run between 10:00am – 1:00pm. The expo will be held at the new Ashley River Park, 200 Renken Road in Summerville. The Hurricane Preparedness Expo aims to provide valuable information, tips, and resources to help residents of our county to prepare for hurricanes and other natural disasters.

For fun, the county EMD is working with Coastal Coffee Roasters to debut a new medium roast coffee roast: Storm Surge. This coffee will be available at the Expo in both ground and whole bean form. And their partner, Tradesman Brewing Company, will also be present with their unique Know Your Zone beer. Free coffee samples will be available to all participants, and there will be beer samples for those 21 years of age and older. Coffee and beer, what else do you need to be prepared?

Please note: Admission is only $2 per person for 3 years-old or older, or free for any Dorchester County Park Annual Pass holders.

It looks like there will be some fun, samples, and prizes, even a raffle for a brand new 3600-watt Generac GP3600 portable generator. Go here for more information.

April 16, 2023

2023 World Grits Festival

Are you looking for something different and unique to do with your family? Then Come on out to 2023 World Grits Festival!

The local Eagle-Record newspaper recently reported the Town of St. George will host the 2023 World Grits Festival! The prestigious event will be held the weekend of April 21 – 23, 2023. On the agenda for the weekend are arts and crafts, all kinds of food, a parade, lots of vendors, and all kinds of festivities. Of course, no Grits festival would be complete without a grits-eating contest.

Interested in attending? Are you a vendor or sponsor? Do you have an organization wanting to be in the parade? if you want or need to know more then simply go to www.worldgritsfestival.com for more information

March 4, 2023

I-26 Improvements Started

While there doesn’t seem to be any official work posted it looks the I26-SC27 exit 187 interchange improvements have started. As of this posting, I couldn’t find any updated information on the SCDOT, Dorchester County, or I26-SC27 Interchange Project websites. But if you traveled through the 187 Exit at all in the last few weeks, it’s obvious work on the interchange has finally started. Construction crews are clearing trees from the North side of the exchange, assumedly in preparation for the new bridge. The I26E onramp has had some resurfacing as well as a portion of the I26E right-hand lane, assumedly for some road widening.

Travelers in this area should be aware there is road work happening and use caution.

December 20, 2022

Watch Out For This Hard Freeze Coming Our Way!

Several weather sources are forecasting freezing weather coming our way beginning Friday December 23, 2022. An artic front is heading our way which looks like will bring several nights of below freezing temperatures. You can explore some cold weather safety tips at National Weather Service. Plan now to stay warm.

You can follow any of these links to see the upcoming forecasted conditions.

November 22, 2022

Rail Maintenance Work

In case you hadn’t noticed, the railroad folks are performing rail replacement work today (11/22) along highway 78 though our Town of Dorchester.

Today, both the road rail crossings in town at Sandridge and Schoolhouse roads were closed most of the day and traffic was detoured down towards Ridgeville while the rail replacement work took place. The two rail crossings should now be re-opened.

I talked with the maintenance crew as they were reopening Sandridge road, they stated the roads will again be closed Monday (11/28) for additional work.

As more information becomes available, I will try to post it timely.

October 14, 2022

I-26 Widening Project Kicked Off

Channel 4 News reported recently state lawmakers and SC Department of Transportation officials kicked off the I-26 widening project on Tuesday. This project will widen I-26 from four lanes to six lanes between Jedburg Road and Columbia. “Generally, the approach is at least six lanes – three lanes in each direction throughout the whole corridor,” said SCDOT Secretary of Transportation, Christy Hall. “As you get closer to Columbia, that northern project between Irmo and Columbia, that’ll be eight lanes in some areas. So it’s a minimum of six lanes throughout.”

In addition to widening the interstate to three lanes in each direction for a total of six lanes, SCDOT will also be improving bridges along the corridor. This should include our I-26/SC27 exchange. The I-26/SC27 Interchange project (https://www.i26-sc27.com) was started pre-pandemic and had worked it’s way through several community meeting. However the project seems stalled since the start of the China Flu pandemic (https://www.i26-sc27.com/). I have asked for a project update from SCDOT on this interchange project. As soon as I hear from them I’ll post a new update.

September 30, 2022

Hurricane Ian

Hurricane Ian off the coast of Charleston is almost ashore as of this posting. Over the next 12-24 hours the storm will pass through our area. Please stay informed. If you lose power, please do not assume the power company knows. You should call and report an outage for your home or business. This helps the power company build a better repair picture. You can look at the Dominion Power Outage Map through the link below. If out traveling, be cautious of hidden dangers including water on the roadways. You should not travel on roads closed due to flooding. Watch for downed powerlines. Be careful when assessing property damage. Watch for dangerous displaced wildlife.

Reporting Power Outages

It is important to report your power outage, even if you see outages already reported in your area. DO NOT CALL 9-1-1 or use social media to report a power outage. Report outages directly to your utility provider.

Dominion Energy SC

DESC Customer Service: 1-800-251-7234
Report Downed/Sparking Lines: 1-888-333-4465
Report Gas Leaks: 1-800-815-0083
Report Power Outage: 1-888-333-4465

Edisto Electric

(803) 245-5141

Berkeley Electric

1-888-253-4232

Some Useful Strom Links:
The National Hurricane Center hurricane tracking and forecasts
Dorchester County Emergency Management Department county specific hurricane and other emergency information including road closures.
South Carolina Emergency Management state storm information
Dominion Power outage Map see where power outages have been reported.

If you have other links or tips, let me know and I’ll add them here.

August 27, 2022August 27, 2022

Dorchester Hopeful to Get Broadband! … Eventually

You should mark you calendars and make plans to attend the Dorchester County Community Meeting on 8/31/2022, at 6 pm, in the Woodland gym.

Rural broadband internet is finally coming to our area, but maybe not right away. Progress takes time I guess. The Eagle-Record recently published there will be a Dorchester County sponsored community meeting at the Woodland High School Gym on Wednesday, August 31, 2022, at 6:00 pm. The purpose of the county sponsored meeting is to provide a second update to affected area residents. Presenting and available for your questions will the two prime area provides, Home Telecom and Palmetto Rural Telephone Cooperative (PRTC).

The Dorchester County Rural Broadband Project is intended to expand the high-speed internet access in our area over the next three years. Project details, including information on our town of Dorchester (South Dorchester), is listed in the Dorchester County Rural Broadband Project web site. This project is being funded with $8.5 Million dollars of taxpayer monies in the form of federal grant funding and with additional matching funds from both Home Telecom and PRTC in order to get the fiber cable installed to provide the needed broadband internet to over 4000 rural homes currently without high speed internet.

Plan ahead! A dinner meal will be provided if you register ahead of time by calling Tracy Langley, Clerk to Council, at 843-832-0196.

Author: dprovenzanosc