Latest South Carolina Headlines

All the headlines from our South Carolina Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Ratings Roundup: Commerce, So. Carolina Farm Bureau, Employers Re, American Sterling

Jun 10 2008 // Fitch Ratings has upgraded its ratings on the Massachusetts-based Commerce Group, Inc. (CGI) and its subsidiaries, and has assigned them a stable outlook: The following ratings are affected: Commerce Group, Inc.: Issuer...

South Carolina Firm Adds Account Manager

Jun 9 2008 // South Carolina-based insurance brokerage and consulting firm, Rosenfeld Einstein, added Debby Jefferson as a commercial account manager in the firm’s Property & Casualty Insurance Group. Jefferson joins the firm...

South Carolina Senate Confirms New Public Safety Director

Jun 6 2008 // Veteran law enforcement officer Mark Keel said he is ready to get started as the new director of the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, an agency under fire recently for allegations of trooper misconduct. Keel, a...

South Carolina Safety Department Conducts Hurricane Evacuation Drill

Jun 5 2008 // South Carolina public safety officials planned a hurricane evacuation simulation as the state prepares for this year’s hurricane season. Public Safety spokesman Sid Gaulden said law enforcement personnel and traffic...

South Carolina Department of Insurance Awards Safe Home Grants

Jun 3 2008 // Scott H. Richardson, director of the South Carolina Department of Insurance and chairman of the Advisory Committee for the South Carolina Building Codes Council, announced the seventh round of Safe Home Grant awards. The...

Business Moves

Jun 2 2008 // Main Street America, Great Lakes Casualty The Main Street America Group, a regional property/casualty insurer based in Jacksonville, Fla. that writes business up and down the East Coast, is expanding to the Midwest. The...

Fire that Killed 9 Firefighters Cost Charleston, S.C. $7.4 Million

May 29 2008 // Records obtained by a Charleston, South Carolina, newspaper show the city has spent or plans to spend more than $7.4 million after the fire that killed nine firefighters last year. The Post and Courier of Charleston...

Weather Officials Confirm Tornado Touched Down in South Carolina

May 23 2008 // The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down in Bamberg County on May 20. Forecasters say the twister had winds up to 90 mph and moved from just north of Olar to near Ehrhardt in the late afternoon. The...

Authorities Find Insurance Investigator’s Body in South Carolina

May 21 2008 // Authorities searching a wooded area on May 20 found the body of a North Carolina insurance investigator who prosecutors believe was killed by the owner of an agency she was auditing. Police searched for Sallie Rohrbach,...

Report on Fatal S.C. Sofa Store Fire Cites Lack of Water

May 19 2008 // A federal draft report on the mistakes made in the fire at a Charleston, S.C. furniture store that led to the deaths of nine firefighters has renewed calls for the city’s fire chief to step down. But the mayor...

Relatives of 2 Fallen South Carolina Firefighters Sue Charleston Businesses

May 16 2008 // Two more families of Charleston, S.C. firefighters killed in last year’s Sofa Super Store blaze sued the store, furniture manufacturers and other companies. The Post and Courier of Charleston reported May 14 the...

Fire Causes $10 Million Damage in South Carolina Beach Community

May 16 2008 // South Carolina fire officials say a blaze has caused $10 million in damage to a high-priced private community in Georgetown County. The May 13 fire in the DeBordieu Colony destroyed one two-story beach home and damaged...

Charleston Report: South Carolina Fire Department Lacked Tactics, Training

May 16 2008 // A new analysis of the South Carolina furniture store fire that killed nine Charleston firefighters last year says the department inadequately trained and supervised its personnel and exposed the men to excessive risks the...

Fla.’s PURE Expands into South Carolina’s High Value Homes Market

May 13 2008 // Florida-based Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange expanded into South Carolina, according to its president and chief executive officer. PURE CEO Ross Buchmueller said the program is dedicated exclusively to serving...

Report: Lack of Water Partially Blamed for Fatal South Carolina Fire

May 12 2008 // A federal draft report on the mistakes made in the fire at a Charleston, S.C. furniture store that led to the deaths of nine firefighters has renewed calls for the city’s fire chief to step down. But the mayor...

Update: Charleston Mayor to Release Report on Fatal South Carolina Blaze

May 8 2008 // Mayor Joe Riley said May 6 he would soon release a long-awaited report on the deaths of nine firefighters in last year’s furniture store blaze, after firefighters and the victims’ families criticized waiting...

South Carolina Bill Banning Booze Inhaler Moves to the House Floor

May 8 2008 // A device that turns liquor into a breathable vapor of oxygen and alcohol would be banned from South Carolina under legislation sent to the House floor. On May 6, the House Judiciary Committee voted 10-4 to approve the bill...

South Carolina: Firefighters Union Criticizes Delay of Charleston Report

May 7 2008 // The nation’s largest firefighters union is criticizing Charleston, S.C. Mayor Joe Riley’s decision to delay a report on how nine firefighters died in a fire last June. The report by a city-appointed panel was...

Report on Fire that Killed 9 South Carolina Firefighters Delayed

May 5 2008 // Charleston, S.C. officials say the release of a report investigating the deaths of nine firefighters in a furniture store blaze has been indefinitely delayed. A panel of experts compiling the report hoped to deliver it to...

South Carolina Teens Can Text and Talk while Driving

May 2 2008 // South Carolina lawmakers decided it’s OK for 15- and 16-year-olds to talk and text message on cell phones while driving. The House voted April 30 to send a measure blocking such activities back to a committee, ending...