Personal Injury Attorneyin Allendale, SC.

A foreign company announced plans last week that they say will bring more than 1,000 new jobs to one of the most economically distressed counties in South Carolina.

Tin Thanh Group Americas, a Vietnamese tire manufacturer, plans to establish its first operations in the United States in Allendale County, one of the poorest, rural counties in the state consistently ranked statewide in the bottom of educational levels, poverty levels, health, and other quality of life factors. According to a release from the S.C. governor's office, the company’s $68 million investment will create 1,031 new jobs.

“This announcement once again shows the world has taken notice of the many benefits of doing business in South Carolina," said Gov. Henry McMaster. "This major $68 million investment and 1,031 new jobs will be transformative for Allendale. We proudly welcome our first Vietnamese Company, Tin Thanh Group Americas, to the state and look forward to creating a long-standing partnership.”

Tin Thanh Group Americas’ South Carolina location will allow the company to manufacture and retread large commercial vehicle tires, as well as operate its commercial tire leasing program, the company said in the release.

“Tin Thanh Group Americas is excited to make South Carolina home for its first location outside Vietnam and is proud to be South Carolina’s first Vietnamese company," said Tin Thanh Group Americas Chief Executive Officer Tran Dinh Quyen. "With the assistance of the Department of Commerce, the SouthernCarolina Alliance and the officials at Allendale County, and the assistance of readySC, the decision was clear compared with the other locations that sought our project in the Southeast. Tin Thanh Group Americas looks forward to a long-lasting, fruitful and cooperative relationship with all of South Carolina.”

The company plans to build its new facility on Walker Road in Fairfax. Operations are expected to be online by September 2024.

“Allendale County welcomes Tin Thanh Group Americas to our community, and we thank them for their investment in our future and our people," said Tin Thanh Group Americas Chief Executive Officer Tran Dinh Quyen. "Each of the more than one thousand jobs will make a difference in the lives of a family in the region because good jobs and good economic development change lives. We look forward to working with this fine company, which is committed to sustainability and good values, bringing prosperity and progress to our area.”

“SouthernCarolina Alliance welcomes Mr. Tran and the Tin Thanh Group Americas to our region, where they plan to build their first facility in the U.S.," said SouthernCarolina Alliance President and Chief Executive Officer Danny Black. "The jobs they are creating, and their capital investment will be a tremendous catalyst to growth in this rural area. Industries like Tin Thanh are the backbone of the regional economy and touch every aspect of the local community.”

According to its website, Tin Thanh Group is a pioneer in using renewable energy and reducing global emissions, aiming for a multi-industry business, sustainable development for an increasingly better environment and reducing emissions for this earth.

Supplying energy from reusable sources, Tin Thanh Group Americas will provide operations in recycled energy, closed industry-agriculture, recycled waste and tire leasing while serving the environment, energy, high-tech agriculture and technology markets, stated the release. With a focus on sustainability, the company is committed to implementing sustainable practices to lower the carbon-emission level and provide a cleaner environment.

Individuals interested in joining the Tin Thanh Group Americas team should email resumes to the company.

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to this project. The council also awarded a $1 million Rural Infrastructure Fund (RIF) grant to Allendale County to assist with the costs of site preparation and infrastructure improvements.

FAIRFAX, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - Tin Thanh Group Americas, a tire manufacturer, on Tuesday announced plans to establish its first U.S. operations in Allendale County with a $68 million investment that will create 1,031 jobs.

Meanwhile, Orangeburg County will be the site of a global solar panel manufacturer’s first U.S. manufacturing plant.

Located at Walker Road in Fairfax, Tin Thanh Group Americas will build a new facility in Allendale County.

Tin Thanh Group Americas’ South Carolina location will allow the company to manufacture and retread large commercial vehicle tires, as well as operate its commercial tire leasing program.

HOW TO APPLY:

People interested in joining the Tin Thanh Group Americas team should email resumes to the company.

“Allendale County welcomes Tin Thanh Group Americas to our community, and we thank them for their investment in our future and our people,” said Allendale County Council Chairman Matthew Connelly. “Each of the more than one thousand jobs will make a difference in the lives of a family in the region because good jobs and good economic development change lives. We look forward to working with this fine company, which is committed to sustainability and good values, bringing prosperity and progress to our area.”

MORE | S.C. wages hit all-time high as 2-state job market stays strong

Supplying energy from reusable sources, Tin Thanh Group Americas will provide operations in recycled energy, closed industry-agriculture, recycled waste and tire leasing while serving the environment, energy, high-tech agriculture and technology markets.

With a focus on sustainability, the company is committed to implementing sustainable practices to lower the carbon-emission level and provide a cleaner environment, according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce.

Operations are expected to be online by September 2024.

MORE | What is Savannah River National Lab planning in downtown Aiken?

The region already has a history in tire manufacturing, with two Bridgestone plants in Aiken County

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to this project. The council also awarded a $1 million Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to Allendale County to assist with the costs of site preparation and infrastructure improvements.

“This announcement once again shows the world has taken notice of the many benefits of doing business in South Carolina,” Gov. Henry McMaster said. “This major $68 million investment and 1,031 new jobs will be transformative for Allendale.”

Orangbuerg County will be the host of a global solar panel manufacturer’s first U.S. manufacturing plant.

Hounen Solar announced plans to invest $33 million in a new manufacturing operations facility that will create 200 new jobs.

The plant is located at 145 Millennium Drive, the company will be leasing a 200,720-square-foot plant. The plant will not only be the first United States plant for Hounen Solar but also the first South Carolina location for the company.

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McMaster said: “Hounen’s investment in Orangeburg County not only adds to the state’s growing renewable energy economy but also shows that South Carolina is a place where companies in every industry can thrive. We look forward to creating a strong partnership with Hounen for years to come and seeing the impact of these 200 new jobs.”

The Orangeburg County facility will allow announced plans to invest $33 million in a new manufacturing operations facility that will create 200 new jobs. to develop, manufacture and sell one gigawatt crystalline silicon PV panels in the U.S.

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved the job development credits related to this project and also awarded Orangeburg county a $500,000 Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to help with the costs of building improvements.

Copyright 2023 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

The bridge between Screven County and South Carolina is getting some much needed attention.

South Carolina Department of Transportation is pursuing replacement of the US 301 bridge over the Savannah River, connecting Sylvania to Allendale, SC. The bridge is over 50 years old and needs to be brought up to current design standards. In order to make this happen, SCDOT spokesman Alex Bennett said it would be more effective on cost and labor to build a new bridge rather than trying to fix the current one.

Under the current plan, the new bridge would include two 12-foot travel lanes with two 10-foot outside shoulders. The roadway approaches would have the same lane/shoulder widths.

Drivers crossing the bridge would not see significant changes. The plan is to build the new bridge alongside the old one, and demolish the old one once the new one is ready. The decision was made, in part, because there are no other bridges in the area allowing access between Georgia and South Carolina.

The boat ramps are not expected to close either. But, those swimming or boating should exercise caution when underneath the bridge, particularly during the demolition phase.

Bennett said the project will be entirely funded by their federal bridge replacement program, which was funded by the Biden Administration's $27 billion program to repair and upgrade roughly 15,000 bridges across the U.S. While SCDOT is managing the project, the Georgia Department of Transportation is working with the SCDOT via a bi-state intergovernmental agreement.

An environmental document is being drafted to explain the project in further detail to the various agencies who need to approve it.

The SCDOT is taking questions and comments for consideration through Thursday, May 26. A public comment meeting was held at USC Salkehatchie in Allendale on Thursday, May 12, for residents to ask questions and give input on the project. Many of the residents in attendance saw the benefits of the new bridge for the community.

"I think it's wonderful," said Eva Walker. "It's what this town needs."

"It's a great project, it's certainly needed," said Bill Robinson.

Those wanting to submit a question or comment may do so online at scdotgis.online/301bridgeoverSavannahRiver, email comments to BennettJA@scdot.org, or mail them to Bennett at P.O. Box 191 Columbia, SC 29202-0191.

ALLENDALE — The sheriff of Allendale County withdrew thousands in cash with no explanation. The clerk of court paid thousands in Christmas bonuses to staff, and to herself, without reporting them to the IRS. And the tiny, rural county has at least 45 bank accounts, some in individuals’ names, according to findings in a new forensic audit.

The audit, by Burkett Burkett & Burkett of West Columbia, examined several years of financial records and cited a range of severe accounting deficiencies that left the county at serious risk of fraud. County Council members heard details of the new report on June 29.

The county lacks checks and balances in its accounting practices, has issued payments without invoices and hasn’t kept a general ledger — one of the most basic of accounting tools — for the past 13 years, the auditors found.

Council members and the county administrator pledged to make improvements and cited changes already underway. They sought the audit after complaining that the county treasurer, who is elected, was not providing them basic information about revenue, among other concerns. The treasurer, Gerzell Chaney, resigned two weeks ago, just days after state lawmakers wrote to Gov. Henry McMaster urging him to take action.

William Goodson, who took over as county administrator in late 2019, has been working to address the escalating crisis since. “This is not a complicated county to run. This is a small business. We do not need 45 bank accounts,” he said.

Ronald Burkett, the auditing firm’s president, presented the audit to council. He said he couldn’t determine if employees had committed financial crimes but pointed to inept accounting that diminished hope of detecting it.

Among top concerns: Sheriff Tom Carter took out a “drug fund” account in his personal name and did not disclose it to the county administrator.

“I can’t imagine why you would have an account (for county funds) in an individual’s name,” Burkett said.

In 2020, more than $11,000 was deposited into sheriff’s “drug fund” account, including one deposit for $10,565 labeled simply “drug money.” Yet, the deposit wasn’t linked to any court proceedings, the audit says.

Carter also personally withdrew thousands of dollars from the account, the audit says. He took out nine cash withdrawals totaling $5,095 but provided no explanation of why he was withdrawing $3,695 of that money, the audit says.

“There was no approval process for these cash withdrawals, no dual control, and no reporting to the County Administrator,” the audit says. “This is a material weakness and creates the potential for fraud.”

Carter did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The audit’s revelations come amid a decadelong parade of scandals involving South Carolina sheriffs. Roughly one in three South Carolina counties have seen their sheriffs run afoul of the law.

All told, 14 sheriffs have been accused of violating laws they were sworn to uphold. A fifteenth, this one in Orangeburg, funneled public funds into a bogus credit union to buy a $72,000 mobile home.

The audit is also another blow to a county that has long struggled with soaring poverty, failing schools and government mismanagement. In the past five years, the state took over the county’s low-performing school district for the second time while three of Allendale’s public officials went to jail on embezzlement charges.

All this occurred after the county lost its lone newspaper, the weekly Allendale Sun, in 2015 — depriving residents of a key agent to scrutinize the actions of government officials.

Time and again in South Carolina, a lack of scrutiny and financial controls has led to allegations of mismanagement or worse, The Post and Courier has detailed this year in its Uncovered series. The newspaper has partnered with 16 news outlets to expose misconduct and questionable government actions across the Palmetto State, and explore the roots of those problems.

Beyond the Sheriff’s Office, the Allendale County audit shows far-reaching risks given a lack of checks and balances and a serious lack of accounting across departments:

• Officials have kept no master list of capital assets.

• Payments for women’s jail renovations were made without invoices.

• The county clerk alone has nine bank accounts and is the sole person receiving and distributing money in them. She paid $13,195 in Christmas bonuses to her staff, including herself, out of a discretionary fund in 2020 but didn’t account for them in the county payroll system or report them to the IRS on W-2s. The clerk, Elaine Sabb, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“It’s been going on and going on,” Burkett said. “All of this leads to potential for fraud.”

Tony Bartelme and Glenn Smith contributed to this report from Charleston.

ALLENDALE, S.C. (WIS) – On Wednesday families in Allendale County were picking up the pieces after a tornado ripped through the area on Tuesday, leaving significant damage.

According to the South Carolina Emergency Division, three non-life-threatening injuries have been reported.

The American Red Cross of South Carolina is currently assisting 15 families after the tornado impacted their homes.

Representative Justin Bamberg has asked that Governor Henry McMaster declare a state of emergency in Allendale and Bamberg counties.

Officials say four homes were destroyed, five homes had major damage and six homes had minor damage. More damage assessments will be done Wednesday.

Eletha Kearse, who lives in Ulmer, suffered damage to her trailer, and is praising God because she said it could have been much worse.

As a tornado ripped through the county, Kearse was watching coverage on TV until it came to her doorstep.

“I’m letting everybody else know what the storm was doing, and not knowing not that the storm was headed our way,” she said. “Next thing you know lights went off, next thing you know I heard a sound over my trailer. And I said ‘Lord, it done hit.’ And all I could do was just pray and cry and just ask the Lord just to cover us.”

Half of her awning got blown to the other side of the home.

The window of Kearse’s car got smashed by a refrigerator that was outside. She credits her carport for stopping the fridge from being picked up and thrown on top her home.

There’s also a leak on inside, and she didn’t have power until 7am this morning.

“We could’ve been gone yesterday but God spared our life because as you know, a trailer don’t stand a chance on a tornado, that’s just like a piece of paper,” she said. “So like I said, I am truly blessed. My daughter and my niece are truly blessed today because we’re alive and this is my testimony that I can tell people, do not take a tornado for a joke because it is real.”

Surveying storm damage across the county on Wednesday, WIS found trees ripped up and downed power lines on multiple roads.

WIS also found metal tanks rolled across fields on Railroad Ave. in Allendale, and cars smothered by fallen trees.

There were also collapsed silos on farms, and all sheet metal crumpled like aluminum foil.

Amid the wreckage, Kearse found perspective.

“Like I tell people, my trailer and my car are material things, but God spared our life yesterday and that’s a blessing,” she said.

Allendale County Schools were closed on Wednesday, and will be closed again on Thursday.

Allendale-Fairfax Elementary School was used as a shelter on Tuesday night following the storm.

The Red Cross tells WIS that it’s unclear at this point if the school will be reopened as a shelter on Wednesday night.

Per SCEMD, those wanting to help Allendale County residents affected by the recent storm in Allendale County can make donations of non-perishable food and cleaning supplies. You can do that by calling 803-584-4556 or 706-360-0443.

#Allendale residents who are safe in their houses need to stay home & off the roads.Emergency responders are answering calls rights now.They need the roads cleared of other drivers as they work around debris and help those in need of help.If you have an emergency, call 911. pic.twitter.com/nxk2kVr0Nt

— SCEMD (@SCEMD) April 5, 2022

SCEMD tweeted these photos after the storm Tuesday.

Copyright 2022 WIS. All rights reserved.

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