Personal Injury Attorney in West Ashley, SC.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — New details are emerging on a deadly fire that ripped through a West Ashley apartment complex, killing one person and leaving more than 20 neighbors displaced.

The Charleston County coroner identified the victim as 57-year-old Rachel Fitzpatrick. News 4 is also learning about the neighbors who are now picking up the pieces, and how the Red Cross and the community are stepping up to help.

This donation drive started at 4 p.m. Monday and continued to 7 p.m. They are collecting gift cards and immediate personal care items for the victims of the fire. One resident, Megan Vettraino, moved here from Wisconsin just a couple of months ago to pursue her dream of becoming a teacher. Now, she's left with nothing. Despite the setback, she remains upbeat.

"It's insane how not a single thing is left," she said. "We got hit, rear-ended by this drunk driver, went into a ditch, and we were on the site for probably like three hours."

That's when she got another call she'll never forget.

"I'm sitting in the cop's car, and I get the call asking if I'm home at my apartment," she recalled. "I was like, 'No, why? What's going on?' They told me that it was on fire."

Looking over the damage, she points out how some of her furniture can still be seen.

"My couch was right along the far back wall," she noted. "You can actually still see my TV. Part of it is still hanging on behind the fireplace here."

She's thankful for her new community, even amid the disaster.

"I have loved living here," she said. "It's just very surreal to see all the memories that I've made in the last month, and then be here looking at what's left of it."

Neighbor Karla Gill says the Middleton Cove Apartment residents are like a family.

"There's a very strong community in these apartments," Gill said. "Even if we don't know each other's name, we will always watch for the other one."

Strangely, Vettraino believes the accident earlier in the night may have saved her life.

"If the accident didn't happen, I would've been sound asleep," she said. "So as awful as the accident was, I think in some way it did save my life."

Now, as she embarks on her new life as a teacher, she's thankful.

"I am very grateful for all the memories I did have in that apartment," she said. "And I know there will be many more to come in a new apartment. God always has a plan in place. Everything is going to work out, even. Charleston, this whole community is so amazing."

A GoFundMe for Megan Vettraino has been organized. Other residents have also set up GoFundMe pages to support their rebuild. To donate to Heather and her family, click here. A link to Isaac Camp's GoFundMe is available here. And a link to Destiny Chandler can be found here.

MORNING HEADLINES | Charleston County officials will spray a pesticide from the air early Sunday to eradicate adult mosquitoes following confirmation of human cases of West Nile virus in the county.

The county is also increasing its truck-based spraying around catch basins and areas where elevated mosquito populations have been detected.

“While West Nile virus is naturally present in our region, the number and location of detections can vary from year to year,” Brian Hayes, Charleston County’s mosquito control manager, said in a press release. “Our mosquito surveillance program allows us to identify where disease is present and respond quickly with targeted treatment. We’re asking residents to do their part, too, by taking simple precautions to protect themselves and their families from mosquito bites.”

Spraying from the air to lower mosquito populations is scheduled from 6:15 a.m. Sunday to 8:15 a.m., according to the county. A backup date is set for the following Sunday at the same time. Spraying is done early to avoid impacts with bees and people.

The county said it uses a federally-approved product for aerial spraying named Trumpet EC. It has an active ingredient called Naled which is toxic to fish, aquatic invertebrates, wildlife and bees.

You can reduce risk from mosquito-borne illness by draining standing water around your home, avoiding outdoor activity at dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active; dressing appropriately (long sleeves and long pants when outdoors); using insect repellent; and keeping doors and windows closed.

Local. Free. Independent. Those three words represent the foundation on which the stories told by the Charleston City Paper are built. Since 1997, the Charleston City Paper has provided the kind of information that people in Charleston and across South Carolina rely on. Since 2020, the newspaper has won more than 200 state and national awards for news and advertising excellence making it the top weekly newspaper in South Carolina.

CP OPINION: Project 3500? Try Project Hail Mary. “The economics of affordable housing are brutal. And the only way anyone has ever solved them is by carefully matching their financing — subsidies, tax credits, federal assistance, market-rate unit support — to the development they want to build.”

CP COVER: . Sea turtle conservation is a lot like planting a tree today to be able to sit in shade years from now. Both are long-term investments. Now, 30 years of efforts are culminating in a record-setting year for nests and eggs.

CP NEWS: . With the nation’s midterm elections only two months away, President Donald Trump wants hamburger prices down by election day — a goal he’s willing to pursue by allowing 300,000 metric tons of foreign beef into the country over the next 90 days. America’s ranchers — including many here in South Carolina — aren’t happy about it.

CP NEWS: . Ben Nichols, sports marketer and founder of Padel 22, moved from England. to Mount Pleasant at the tail end of July to get in on the ground floor of what he says is the world’s fastest growing sport’s Lowcountry surge.

CP FOOD: . One could argue the most exciting things happening in the Charleston cuisine scene are happening off the downtown peninsula. Riva Mare, the latest opening from culinary behemoth Indigo Road Hospitality Group, supports this theory.

CP ARTS: . Plastic containers, chip bags and cigarette butts are among the tossed-off contents being transformed for One Creek’s Trash, a three-day exhibition starting Aug. 28 of dozens of artists at Silver Hill Studio in Park Circle.

CP MUSIC: . The Lowcountry Jazz Festival is headed back to the Charleston Gaillard Center Sept. 5-6 for its 20th edition, bringing two nights of jazz, soul and R&B.

. For four historic Lowcountry communities, a 24-month pause could be the difference between preserving their story or losing it to growth.

. Clear the Shelters Day brings together animal shelters, rescue organizations and television stations across the country to encourage pet adoption and reduce overcrowding in shelters.

. The Transportation Security Administration is course-correcting its plans for broader privatized security checkpoints in the wake of mounting pressure and scrutiny of the proposed Gold+ program nationally.

STORM: . Tropical Storm Dolly formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday, becoming the fourth named storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season only days after the death of country music star Dolly Parton. The list of names for storms is prepared six years in advance.

. The state Department of Transportation is asking for public feedback on a proposed roundabout and roadway improvements at a Berkeley County intersection that residents have long described as dangerous.

. Many of South Carolina’s historic Black schools no longer educate students, but preservation advocates say their stories and significance to local communities deserve to be remembered.

Our online events calendar has scores of events around the Lowcountry every day, making it the most detailed calendar of what’s happening in the area. Just click on “Events” above at right under the black toolbar. You’ll be amazed at what you find.

CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) — A vacant piece of property in West Ashley could soon become a one-stop location for several Charleston County services.

Charleston County has purchased about 1.5 acres at the corner of Old Parsonage Road and Highway 61, where it plans to build a new magistrate court.

The new court would replace the county’s current West Ashley magistrate location, which Councilman Brantley Moody said is in leased space and is old, small and outdated.

“This is bringing county services closer to a growing area of West Ashley,” Moody said.

But the magistrate court will be just one part of a larger county-services complex planned for the property.

The site sits next to the new St. Andrews Public Service District fire facility and Charleston County EMS building. A passive park also surrounds the new public-safety facility.

Moody said the county’s goal is to bring those services together in one area.

“It’s a whole county municipal complex,” Moody said. “We’ve got the St. Andrews PSD and the EMS, the Charleston County EMS new building right there. We’ve got a passive park that surrounds that new facility, and then we’re going to be putting a beautiful county complex there to sort of complete that parcel.”

The new magistrate court is expected to be large enough to include a Sheriff’s Office presence.

The county also plans to eventually have space for the Treasurer’s Office and Auditor’s Office.

Moody said the development is intended to make it easier for people in West Ashley to access county services without having to travel farther through the area.

The property has a history of its own. Moody said it was once a thriving shopping center about 30 years ago but has sat largely underused in recent years.

The county purchased the property for a little more than $1.5 million.

The full buildout is expected to cost between $8 million and $10 million. A $7 million federal grant will go toward the construction costs.

The project is still in its early stages. The property is currently undergoing an environmental review. County officials hope to begin design work before the end of the year. Once design begins, officials estimate construction will take about two years.

The current target for completion is 2030.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) — Another piece of the Long Savanna development moved closer to construction on Thursday.

But as the process continues, Charleston leaders and the developer are working on changes intended to address the impact of thousands of new homes on West Ashley.

The development is planned to bring 4,500 units to Bear Swamp Road, just off Bees Ferry Road and Savannah Highway, two major arteries that already carry heavy traffic.

Parts of the project appeared before the city’s Technical Review Committee on Thursday morning. The phases and early site plan reviewed by the committee still need revisions before returning back to the committee for another review.

Stephen Bowden, the Charleston City Council member who represents the area, said the city is trying to make changes before the development is fully built out rather than responding to problems afterward.

“All we can do at that point is be reactive, and so that really limits what we’re able to do,” Bowden said. “So now what we’ve done with Long Savannah prior to it actually starting to get built out is make sure that the plan makes as much sense as it possibly can.”

The city has already worked with the developer to reduce the number of planned units by 1,900.

“You hear 4,500 units, and that’s a lot, and it’s going to be a big adjustment,” Bowden said. “But 1,900 less than it would have been, and that’s all through just slow, steady, hard work that the city’s doing to make this plan better for residents.”

A new elementary school is now planned in place of another apartment building. The goal is to reduce the need for parents in the community to use major roads such as Bees Ferry Road and Glenn McConnell Parkway for school drop-off and pickup.

The city and developer are also working on neighborhood mobility and stormwater infrastructure. City leaders also want businesses included in the Long Savanna community so residents can access everyday services without having to leave the area and add to traffic on West Ashley roads. Beyond that, they’re working to ensure public safety resources, like a fire station, are nearby.

Bowden said the city is looking at transportation solutions beyond simply adding more lanes and roads.

“Everybody thinks the solution to traffic is more infrastructure, and that’s got to be part of it,” Bowden said. “But the reality is it’s got to be things that we’re going to be able to maintain without pricing everybody out through massive tax increases. And so sometimes pouring that new concrete isn’t the best solution. It’s giving people options.”

City leaders are also looking at longer-term planning tools, including enforcing the urban growth boundary and continuing work on a rewrite of the city’s zoning code.

Bowden said where new development is concentrated can also affect how much people have to commute.

“If we’re not utilizing those opportunities to kind of center the density and where building is happening, then people are just going to take the opportunity to move further and further out and just commute to the same place that they were going to anyway,” Bowden said. “And that’s the nightmare scenario. So, we’ve got to balance it all.”

Some West Ashley residents say the changes are a step forward but do not address the larger impact of continued development in the area.

“Less townhomes is a start, but it doesn’t really solve the problem. It’s a nice gesture,” Liz Munn, a West Ashley resident, said.

Munn said the Charleston of today is different from the community that existed when many of these developments were first planned.

“I feel like whenever they planned all of this, it was a very different Charleston,” she said.

She also questioned whether adding an elementary school within the development will address the broader transportation demands created by thousands of new residents.

“Whether or not their schools are in the neighborhood or not, they still have to go to work,” Munn said. “They still are going to the grocery store. They still are going to take their kids to sports activities and enjoy Charleston. And I just don’t think that many cars on the road is safe for anyone.”

Munn said the discussion also needs to consider people who already live in West Ashley.

“What about everyone who already lives here? What about our quality of life? We need to be at home in our home,” she said.

She said she does not believe development itself is necessarily the problem, but rather the pace and concentration of new construction.

“The quality of life of long-time residents has changed, but everything changes,” Munn said. “It’s not that development is terrible. It’s that it’s coming too fast and in too much concentration into the West Ashley area.”

Munn said she understands the challenges facing city leaders, but questions how quickly infrastructure can catch up with development.

“I think that the sins of yesterday are coming home today,” Munn said. “And I feel for all the folks that work in the city planning and that are elected. They’re trying to make a difference, but change has always come slow and development moves fast.”

She said developers may have received approvals years ago for projects that are just now moving forward.

“And by way of developers getting permission to do this 20 years ago or 40 years ago and now they’re doing it, how long is it going to take to make a change? I don’t know,” she said.

The city is also pursuing a grant to retime traffic signals across West Ashley, which Bowden said could provide improvements before funding from a proposed transportation sales tax referendum would become available for construction.

“That could make a really big difference before any money from a referendum passing would be available for construction,” Bowden said. “But we compound that signal timing with hopefully passing the referendum in November. And that means fixing the biggest bottleneck right now in West Ashley, which is the intersection of Magwood and Glenn McConnell.”

Construction for the Long Savanna community will take place in phases, with the full development expected to take years to complete.