FLORENCE, SC (WMBF) – The South Carolina Department of Public Safety is mourning the loss of one of its own after a state transport officer died on Wednesday.

SCDPS said 43-year-old South Carolina State Transport Police Officer Mark Reynolds experienced a medical emergency during a training exercise earlier in the day.

Reynolds is a Florence native and was an officer who covered Florence, Williamsburg, and Georgetown counties in Region 5. Prior to joining the force in 2022, he served as a firefighter for more than a decade and a transport truck driver before that.

“The death of Officer First Class Reynolds is a profound loss, not only for the State Transport Police, but the entire Department of Public Safety,” SCDPS Director Robert G. Woods, IV said. “We are all hugging our families a little closer tonight and praying for Mark’s wife, children, friends, and loved ones who are left reeling from this sudden loss.”

Reynolds is being remembered as a dependable and respected man by his fellow officers.

“Today is a very sad day for the State Transport Police. For anyone who knew Mark personally, he was well-liked, respected and extremely dependable,” STP Colonel Dwayne Wilson said. “He was committed to his job and lived a life of service to the state, through his years as a firefighter and most recently as one of our officers. He will be greatly missed.”

Information about a memorial service for Reynolds will be released by SCDPS when details become available.

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