South-Carolina
Officials announce road closures due to Hurricane Helene

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – As Hurricane Helene heads towards South Carolina, various officials from across the Midlands have announced road closures due to flooding.
City of Columbia
As of around noon Thursday, the City of Columbia announced portions of Whaley Street and Main Street have closed due to having accumulated a significant amount of rain.
Whaley Street is closed from Assembly Street to Sumter Street, and Main Street is closed from Catawba Street to Whaley Street.
The Columbia-Richland Fire Department also reported that the intersection of Main Street and Whaley Street is flooded.
WIS News 10 crews have also picked up on a large amount of rainwater at the intersection of Blossom Street and Huger Street, seen below.
As of around 12:45 p.m., The Columbia Police Department (CPD) said they are redirecting traffic at this intersection due to severe flooding. Westbound traffic on Blossom, who are headed towards Cayce, will be routed to Gervais Street.
At around 1:30 p.m., officials with the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) said the Blossom Street bridge has closed due to flooding. Crews are working to reopen the road, but SCDOT said drivers should expect delays.
The intersection of Key Road and Market Street, adjacent to Williams-Brice Stadium has also experienced flooding Thursday. The Columbia-Richland Fire Department said a driver had to be rescued from his vehicle after it stalled out in flood waters on Key Road.
The city said they are sending crews to monitor the closures and eventually reopen the roads.
The following intersections are prone to flooding:
- Main and Whaley
- Gervais and Laurens
- Blossom and Henderson
- Blossom and Saluda
- Harden and Santee
- Monroe and Maple
- Two Notch and Read
- Wheat and Amherst
- Adger and Devine
- Wheat and Sumter
- Wheat and Pickens
- Heyward and Ravenel
- Pickens between Wheat and Green
- Barnwell and Pendleton
- Harden and Read
- Harden and Calhoun
- Franklin and Marion
- Franklin and Sumter
- Columbia College and N. Main
- Bull and Laurel
Columbia officials encourage residents to avoid these areas during and immediately after weather events involving heavy rain.
This story is developing. Check back here for updates.
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South-Carolina
South Carolina Elections Commission deputy executive director fired after internal investigation

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – The deputy executive director for the South Carolina Elections Commission has been fired amid an ongoing SLED investigation.
According to a spokesperson from the elections commission, Paige Salonich was fired after an internal investigation was made into her conduct. She was initially suspended while the investigation was ongoing.
In Salonich’s termination letter, the elections commission said that she was caught by agency security cameras placing “an unauthorized device in the SEC training room a clear violation of state and agency policy,” on Sept. 17.
In the letter, the commission said that placing the unauthorized device “constitutes the unauthorized use and misuse of state property and raises serious concerns regarding trust, confidentiality, and workplace integrity.”
Salonich also allegedly used profane language and raised her voice at leadership on Sept. 17, saying that she “was being held hostage at you own (explicit language) job,” and that she “would never be a hostage in this (explicit language) place again,” per her termination letter.
Her termination comes after former Executive Director of the South Carolina Elections Commission, Howard Knapp, was also fired on Sept. 17.
SLED is currently investigating Salonich’s placement of the unauthorized device.
The full letter can be found below.
This is a developing story. Stay with WIS for the latest details.
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South-Carolina
Firefighter hospitalized after McDonald’s restaurant catches fire in South Carolina

SPARTANBURG, S.C. (WBTV) – A firefighter was hurt after a McDonald’s restaurant caught fire in South Carolina on Tuesday.
The Sept. 23 fire broke out around 12:30 a.m. at the McDonald’s on Cedar Springs Road in Spartanburg, per sister-station WHNS.
The local fire marshal told WHNS that the injured firefighter was taken to the hospital, but was released later Tuesday morning. The nature and extent of the firefighter’s injuries were not immediately clear.
According to online information, that McDonald’s was open until 12 a.m. Despite the fire starting only a half hour after closing time, WHNS reported that nobody was inside the restaurant when flames broke out.
The fire marshal said the fire started in the restaurant’s HVAC system above the ceiling tiles. Drone video taken by WHNS appeared to show black marks on the McDonald’s roof; however, officials said the roof did not collapse.
Once the fire was put out, two paper signs were taped to the restaurant door. One said “CLOSED” while the other said “WARNING THIS BUILDING IS UNSAFE.” It is unclear how much damage was caused by the flames, or long the McDonald’s could be closed.
The restaurant is about 15 minutes off I-85 Business, on the southern side of Spartanburg.
Also Read: Historic train depot burns down amid early-morning fire in South Carolina
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Copyright 2025 WBTV. All rights reserved.
South-Carolina
South Carolina High School Football Top 25

There wasn’t a lot of shakeup in the fourth. week of the 2025 season. We did see ac top five battle between Northwestern and South Pointe that produced a new No. 2 in Irmo. Two new additions to the Top 25 are A.C. Flora and Stratford.
Previous rank: 1
Defeated Gray Collegiate 42-14; next at Oceanside Collegiate
Previous rank: 3
Defeated Carolina Forest 51-21; next at Myrtle Beach
Previous rank: 4.
Defeated then-No. 2 Northwestern 27-23; next at No, 24 A.C. Flora
Previous rank: 5
Idle; next at Chapin
Previous rank: 2
Lost 27-23 to then-No. 4 South Pointe
Previous rank: 6
Defeated Strom Thurmond 37-13; next vs. Gilbert
Previous rank: 7
Defeated Westside 42-6; next vs, Palmetto
Previous rank: 8
Defeated North Myrtle Beach 53-14; next at Socastee
Previous rank: 10
Defeated Woodmont 48-6; next vs. Chesnee
Previous rank: 11
Defeated Lexington 36-30; next at T.L. Hanna
Previous rank: 12
Defeated Chapin 45-22; next vs. Fairfield Central
Previous rank: 13
Defeated Chester 34-14; next vs. Southside Christian
Previous rank: 14
Defeated Cane Bay 34-14; next at St. James
Previous rank: 16
Defeated Crestwood 28-0; next vs. Spring Valley
Previous rank: 17
Idle; next vs. Gray Collegiate
Previous rank: 19
Defeated Fort Dorchester 65-7; next vs. Crestwood
Previous rank: 20
Idle; next vs. Riverside
Previous rank: 21
Idle; next at Woodmont
Previous rank: 23
Defeated then-No. 9 Camden 56-13; next idle
Previous rank: 22
Idle; next at Cane Bay
Previous rank: 24
Idle; next vs. Boiling Springs
Previous rank: 25
Defeated Wren 40-27; next vs. Greenwood
Previous rank: 9
Lost 56-13 to Ridge View; next at Richland Northeast
Previous rank: unranked
Defeated Laurens 49-0; next vs. No. 3 South Pointe
Previous rank: unranked
Defeated Socastee 56-12; next vs. Colleton County
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