The little town with a big heart
Dorchester County urges residents to report any structural damage to their properties or businesses. This information will assist county damage assessment teams in evaluating the extent of the storm’s impact and will aid in expediting the recovery process.
To report storm-related structural damage, please fill out the online Structural Damage Form or contact our Call Center at (843) 832-0393 which will be open until Thursday at 2:00 p.m.
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I had not received the needed ten petition signature until Sunday, August 13th and sent the petition for a public meeting to DHEC despite being past the deadline. DHEC responded today with a letter indicating they would not proceed with a Public Hearing due to the missed regulatory deadline, but would arrange for a Public Meeting. The public meeting will allow for the exchange of information and provide an opportunity for the community to express our concerns.
Once the public meeting details are received, interested parties will be notified and I will update this site with the meeting time and place details.
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DHEC has a new application for another sand mine and has made noting to the adjacent properties. The Moore Mine (Application for a Mine Operating Permit I-002398) is an 89.9-acre mine planed to a depth of 30 feet, with an included +-15 acres flagged as wetlands, located at the end of Moore Road, between Salem and Powder Horn Roads. The mine operations plan on pumping out water during mining into the wetlands draining to Halfway Gut Creek. Reclamation information indicates the mine pits (39.3 acres) will remain and be allowed to fill with water for future lakes or ponds. The site maps include possible “future home sites.” This mine will add even more sand truck traffic to Zion, Salem, Powder Horn, and Sandridge Roads.
You can review the DHEC permit information here (https://epermweb.dhec.sc.gov/ncore/external/publicnotice/info/-209032074109656397/details). You can post comments on the “Add Comments” tab of the DHEC site. However in order for the local community to express concerns in a public hearing, the statute requires the submission of a petition signed by a minimum of ten people.
I have created a downloadable or printable form to petition for a public hearing. Simply download or print the form (just select the download arrow or the printer icon below) and fill in the requested information on the form below. Then scan it with your computer, or take a picture with your phone of the completed form and email it to dprovenzanosc@gmail.com no later than Noon August 11, 2023. I need to compile the names and send them and the signed forms to DHEC by 5pm on that date.
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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.
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