Author: Dick Mangrum

Eight students and four district employees are the latest additions to the COVID tracking page of the Oconee School District.  One of the employees works in the district office.  Two additional classes of some of the youngest pupils have been sent home and assigned return dates.  They are a third grade class at Ravenel Elementary and a first grade class […]

South Carolina’s Third District representative in Washington, Jeff Duncan, looks forward to serving on three House Energy and Commerce subcommittees in the 117th Congress.  The subcommittees include Energy, Environment and Climate Change, and Communications and Technology.  In a statement from Washington, the Laurens Republican said:  “I will utilize my role on these subcommittees to fight for energy dominance, rural broadband […]

Park operations on Lake Hartwell are being reduced by the U-S Army Corps of Engineers, and cutbacks in federal monies for recreation is the reason.  In these instances, the burden will fall to local governments, including the county of Oconee and the city of Clemson.  The Savannah office of the corps is negotiating with local jurisdictions for overall operations and […]

For the Oconee County Planning Commission, during its first 2021 meeting, there was little to do, with the exception of electing officers.  For this year, Mike Smith will chair the group.  Smith’s place was secured on a vote from a motion by Frankie Pearson.

Senator Lindsey Graham supports Senate Leader Mitch McConnell’s push to delay the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump for at least three weeks.  It’s believed that Trump is having trouble securing a defense team, although there are reports that a South Carolina lawyer named Butch Bowers is in line to be part of the team to defend Trump against […]

Oconee Sheriff’s employee Helen Westmoreland gets credit for acquiring a pair of grants that’ll strengthen two of the sheriff’s programs that rely on money outside of taxpayers’ dollars.  The Sheriff’s Foundation received a grant of $7,920.22; Crimestoppers picked up $14,424.40.  The money comes through the South Carolina CARES Act, part of COVID-19 legislation put through the state legislature at the […]

  A 32-year old man from Westminster has been arrested on the charge of criminal sexual conduct with a minor first degree. Announcement from the arresting agency, the Oconee Sheriff’s Office, states that Ricky Lynn Lee Jr. was arrested Tuesday after a deputy sheriff went to the Oconee hospital in response to reports of a possible sexual assault.  The sheriff’s […]

The superintendent for Oconee public schools dismisses the notion that the district’s younger students seem to be more prone, of late, to be contracting COVID-19 than, say, the county’s high school population.  Dr. Michael Thorsland also explained today why the district’s virus tracking page is not equipped to show the total number of students in quarantine at any one time.  […]

New South Carolina cases:  3,363 New Oconee cases:  69 New South Carolina deaths:  39 (none from Oconee on today’s report) A total of 13,734 test results received statewide turned up a 24.5% positivity.  

Libby Imbody and many others will extend the welcome mat next week to a group of visitors whose three-day trip to Walhalla could be a key to furthering the prosperity and popularity of the city’s core commercial district.  These visitors will represent the South Carolina Main Street Program, which Walhalla has joined for the purpose of further revitalizing the downtown.  […]