South Carolina Morning Headlines

Good morning. This is South Carolina Public Radio. I'm Reagan Knight with your morning state headlines. Three suspects are in custody after a Gaffney high school student was shot and killed at a school bus stop Wednesday morning. Gaffney police have charged 18-year-old Kivan Covington and 17-year-old Reginald Barnes Jr. with murder and weapons offenses in the death of 17-year-old senior Jamultran Fair Jr. Cunnington was apprehended Thursday afternoon in Cherokee County while Barnes was booked earlier in the day and denied bond. Police say a third suspect, a 16-year-old juvenile, was taken into custody in Spartanburg County and transferred to the State Department of Juvenile Justice. Multiple local, state, and federal agencies assisted in the investigation. Police urge anyone with additional information to contact the Gaffney Police Department. And Alec Murdoch will appear in court at 10 this morning for a pretrial hearing in Lexington County. Judge Deborah McCaslin has ruled that Murdoch can be unshackled and wear civilian clothing. Today, she'll have to sort through a flurry of motions filed by both sides. For instance, the defense wants to hold Murdoch's new trial in Charleston County. And the state wants to use Murdoch's original testimony in which he admitted he lied about his alibi. A retrial date has been set for April of next year. Opponents of the Silfab, solar plants, and Fort Mill will get their day in court. As will Silfab. Scott Morgan reports. On Tuesday, a state appeals court judge set August 26th as the date to hear an appeal to a recent circuit court decision on the solar materials maker. In July, Judge William McKinnon ruled that Sylphab had not been zoned properly from the start. Silfab is appealing that decision. But also in motion is a set of civil lawsuits against Silfab and against York County. Citizen groups and local property owners have petitioned for about two years to get Silfab moved. The plant operates close to Flint Hill Elementary and Flint Hill Middle Schools. The lawsuits focus on zoning decisions made by the county in 2024 to allow the manufacturing facility to open where the schools were set to go. The appeal set for August 26th could have weight on how these suits play out. Scott Morgan, South Carolina Public Radio, Rock Hill. Orangeburg County Council is one step away from placing a local sales tax proposal before voters this fall. Council members passed the second reading of an ordinance for a 1% local option sales tax during their meeting this week. The measure would add one cent to eligible purchases across the county. A third and final vote is scheduled for Monday. If approved, county residents will decide whether to pass the sales tax measure during the November election. Ann Med is making progress restoring its network following a malware attack that began disrupting systems last.

month. The health system announced that patients can now log back into their my chart accounts using a text verification code sent directly to their phones. The hospitals said that not all features are fully online, but patients can now view their health records. Phone lines of doctors' offices and hospital departments have been restored for direct calls. Dominion Energy has completed a multi-year restoration project on the intake towers at the Lake Murray Dam. Work began in early 2024 to replace the steel headgates inside all. five Saluda hydroelectric towers and rebuild their brick enclosures. Dominion Energy South Carolina President Keller Kissam says the upgrades ensure the nearly century old dam will continue supplying reliable power while regulating water levels and quality for Lake Murray and the lower Saluda River. Boaters should note that a new 200-foot safety exclusion zone is now in place around the towers marked by buoys and enforced by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. South Carolina Highway Patrol commander, Colonel Christopher Williamson, has been presented with the Order of the Palmetto, the state's highest civilian honor. Governor Henry McMaster awarded Williamson the honor for nearly 40 years of service and law enforcement. According to the Department of Public Safety, Williamson was driven by the loss of his sister to an impaired driver as a child. He joined the Highway Patrol in 1988 and made history in 2017 as the agency's first African American commander. During his tenure, Colonel Williamson, Williamson launched community youth programs, supported families of fatal crash victims, and expanded mental health and wellness support for state troopers. And the weekend is going to be hot. Here's Chief Meteorologist Tim Miller with our weekend forecast. And the outlook is pretty much just the way it's been the last several days. It is the heat. And this is no ordinary heat. This is a heat wave that we've not seen in a while. And we're talking these heat indices, these heat index. 100 degrees plus okay we can we can deal with that but we're talking 115 to 118 degrees the way it's going to be saturday down from a charleston to hilton head that's more than oppressive that could be deadly and it can sneak up on you very quickly so extra precaution anything outdoors you want to do it certainly before 11 o'clock in the morning right so any outdoor activities I know a lot of people go play golf for the weekend. I got you. But tea times anytime after about 12 noon, don't plan on doing a whole lot and stay hydrated with water, electrolytes, that type of thing. Even at the pool, be careful for that as well because you can get dehydrated very quickly. I would say Sunday. Sunday will have a week front that will move in the area. That will give us at least a chance, more widespread chance of showers and thunderstorms. Still will do with some storms on Saturday, but I think Sunday will be a little better. Right back to the heat, though, as we get into the next week. So don't see this breaking, except for when we have late afternoon showers and thunderstorm. So take extra caution as we move through the weekend. That's your forecast. And those are your morning state headlines on South Carolina Public Radio. I'm Reagan Knight.