Author: Dick Mangrum

An early Saturday morning Walhalla fire placed two people in hospitals. Chief Brandon Burton describes what happened on Morningside Drive (near Moore Ave) as a cooking fire that was reported to the fire department at 1:42 am.  Fire fighters discovered a male with 30% burns.  He wound up in a Greenville hospital.  Sent to the Oconee hospital was a female […]

A mistake by the office of Oconee elections has apparently cost a candidate the potential of three votes from supporters who were issued the wrong absentee ballots.  They should have been given ballots that would have allowed them to vote in the race for Seat Two,  County Council.  Instead they filled out ballots meant for a neighboring district.  Joy Scharich, […]

The public information officer for the Oconee Sheriff’s Office plans an announcement today on what’s believed to be the recovery of a stolen car.  Master deputy Jimmy Watt said this morning the announcement will come later today.  Apparently the investigation of the theft of a car brought county officers to a Westminster neighborhood.  One man, who appeared to be handcuffed, […]

Oconee sheriff’s officers, working a stolen car case, descended on a residential neighborhood last night in Westminster.  At the 5 o’clock hour, there was police action at the corner of Highland Avenue and Riley Street.  Westminster Chief Rory Jones says county officers retrieved a stolen car.  No other details were immediately available to 101.7/WGOG NEWS.

Westminster City Council wants officials of Music on Main and Apple Festival to be given copies of the state guidelines for events that attract large crowds.  Councilman Reid Adams brought the issue to the table during last night’s meeting and quoted Dr. Billy Campbell, the city’s only physician, as saying he has COVID-19 concerns for event that draw large crowds.  […]

Because of South Carolina coronavirus mandates, any gathering of large crowds has been forbidden.  Consequently, Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative took a decidedly different path than had been the norm in the planning and conducting of its 2020 Annual Meeting of Members.   During the three consecutive days of May 19th through 21st, members participated in a drive-through registration process.  As […]

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) Thursday announced 199 new cases of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 and 9 additional deaths. This brings the total number of people confirmed to have COVID-19 in South Carolina to 9,379 and those who have died to 416. Six of the nine deaths occurred in elderly individuals from Clarendon (1), Darlington […]

The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s help today regarding a report of a burglary and vandalism yesterday at an Oconee County church.  The vandalism was reported to the complainant by a parishioner of the church around 8:30am yesterday.   A deputy responded to St. John’s Anglican Church on River Road near Westminster yesterday morning and began an […]

Corps of Engineers officials at Hartwell Lake have closed all access at Singing Pines Recreation Area, including the roadway leading to the boat ramp parking area, in response to repeated trespassing of the adjacent closed day-use area and public safety issues along the park entrance road and the boat ramp parking area. “Closure of the ramp area, immediately adjacent to […]

Prisma Health’s hospital-based COVID-19 drive-through testing sites will be closed Monday, May 25, for Memorial Day. Sites will reopen Tuesday at their usual start times.   Sites are at Greenville Memorial Hospital, Laurens County Hospital, Oconee Memorial Hospital, Richland Hospital and Tuomey Hospital.