Wedding & Event Venue Near Anderson, SC.

ANDERSON, S.C. —

After a nationwide increase of gun violence in schools, Anderson School District Five is the latest of several districts to install weapons detection systems at school entrances.

Before installing this system, T.L. Hanna High School had locking doors and some safety precautions, but not much else to spot weapons. Starting next week, that's all going to change.

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"Anything we can do to keep a gun from coming on campus. We'll do it," said Shannon Piller, safety and security executive director.

Wednesday, they installed the systems at two entrances in T.L. Hanna and Westside High Schools. Piller said the Evolv weapons detection system works better and faster than metal detectors, focusing in on cylindrical objects.

"So, something round, like the barrel of a gun," he said. "Obviously certain materials. The good thing about EVOLV is it has been designed to let a large flow of traffic in without backing students or anyone else up out into the parking lot."

The system draws a box around the item's location on onscreen so SROs can search directly at the source.

The nearly $470,000 project was approved after three instances of guns on campus in Anderson District Five and several school shootings nationwide.

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"And this is definitely a system that will pick up on those and deter as well," Piller said.

T.L. Hanna Principal Walter Mayfield said they'll train SROs and school staff Friday, allowing parents to come by and test it themselves.

"We're having to use a lot of personnel to make this work," Mayfield said. "We have to have people monitoring students walking through, we have to have people search bags. We have to have administrators there just to sort of oversee the thing, SROs."

He hoped the increased precautions and work will lead to a safer school for both students and staff.

"They're just excited to have it, " he said. "They get anxious, too. They don't know, they may have 150 kids that walk into their classroom during the day, and they don't know, they have a peace of mind knowing this kid does not have a weapon when he comes into my room."

According to Piller, there are other measures in place to ensure students can't enter the building through other doors.

GREENVILLE, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - Storm damage and power outages were reported Friday night after a line of severe storms moved through Upstate South Carolina and western North Carolina.

A tornado warning was issued for parts of the Upstate earlier in the night.

A downed tree and powerlines were on a home on Gurley Street in Anderson County. FOX Carolina’s Kennedi Harris spoke with the family who said they are renting the house. The mother and children who live there were at a neighbor’s home with the tree fell so everyone is okay. They are waiting for the Red Cross to arrive and said they have lost most of their belongings.

In Spartanburg County along I-26, multiple trees were downed during the storm. Spartanburg County Emergency Management said eight trees fell near or along the highway. However, they added that no injuries from the falling trees were reported following the storm.

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The South Carolina Highway Patrol reported downed trees in the roadway at the following locations:

The Georgia vs. LSU game at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena was delayed due to a leak from the ceiling during the storms caused by excessive high winds.

Duke Energy reported 5,792 customers without power in Buncombe County on Friday night.

As of 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, the power company reported the following counties with customers without power: 51 in Buncombe County, 87 in Haywood County, 25 in Jackson County and 239 in Macon County.

Duke Energy announced on Saturday, that crews are currently working to assess the damage and their line technicians are making good headway with repairs. Officials said the estimated time of restoration is expected to be available once the assessments are complete.

The National Weather Service conducted a storm survey in northern Laurens and southern Spartanburg Counties to determine if the damage was due to straight line winds or tornadoes.

Officials confirmed that a tornado was the cause of EF-1 rated damage in the Gray Court area in Laurens County.

The National Weather Service says “The tornado traveled into downtown Gray Court where sporadic, snapped, and uprooted trees followed a narrow path. It continued to travel through Blackberry Rd and in the vicinity of Highway 92. It then traveled across Ora Rd, while uprooting or snapping at least a dozen trees near a pond on the intersection of Garret Rd and Ora Rd. Numerous trees were uprooted or snapped between MM41 and MM42 on Interstate 26, near Enoree. The tornado finally lifted with a few large limbs down off of Cross Anchor Rd.”

Multiple trees were down in roadways in Cherokee, North Carolina near the Qualla Boundary.

The county was under a Tornado Warning for a portion of Friday evening.

Stay with FOX Carolina for updates on this developing story.

Copyright 2023 WHNS. All rights reserved.

ANDERSON, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - Thursday night was the 5th annual You Are Beautiful pageant at the Anderson County Civics Center. The event highlights the beauty of the special needs community while also raising money for the Anderson Special Olympic teams. This year’s theme was a night under the stars.

“They are just as important as anybody else in society and it gives them a platform to promote awareness and it also gives them an opportunity to be in a beauty pageant just like everybody else is” said Kathy Schofield, the Co-Director for Anderson Special Olympics.

This year’s pageant set a new record with 33 contestants. The pageant is organized by the Area 14 Special Olympics office and gives teens and adults with special needs a moment in the spotlight.

“You win awards and it’s kinda fun to me” said Cody Darby, a contestant.

Last year, Darby won the “Handsome Hunk” award. He hit the catwalk this year aiming to win another award.

“I walk on the stage and I do a moonwalk too, it’s fun too, very fun” he said.

Other returning contestants like Melissa Trotter aimed for bigger prizes this year.

“I just pray to God to make me not nervous,” said Trotter, “I like doing them and I like seeing people out here watching us.”

“The rules and regulations of a typical pageant kind of go out the window a little bit” said Susie Spainhour, she had her two adult children in the pageant.

“When you’re a parent of a child with a disability, it’s very costly just every day is very costly. And so when they can bring in someone who does their hair and makeup, and it’s free for our kids, it just means a lot” she said.

Of course the pageant is a lot of fun, but donations from raffles and ticket prices serve a bigger purpose towards the Special Olympics.

“It helps those athletes with uniforms, travel expenses, any equipment that they need, and it also helps us host other wonderful events throughout the year that are not just sports” said Schofield.

Giving contestants a chance to show off, and show how amazing they truly are.

“You see their inner beauty, their inner character, just that they want to show the love is inside their heart and that they’re cute and they’re special and they’re beautiful” said Spainhour.

Copyright 2023 WHNS. All rights reserved.

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South Carolina running back Mario Anderson is ready to make the most of his opportunity in Columbia after transferring to the Gamecocks from Newberry College following the 2022 season.

In 29 games played at Newberry, Anderson rushed for 3,301 yards and 35 touchdowns on 513 carries after signing with the Wolves out of Stratford High School. Anderson has two years of eligibility remaining.

In a press conference on Thursday morning, the 5-foot-9, 208-pound running back detailed how he is ready to take on the challenge and is hoping to make the most of his opportunity.

“I just seize all opportunities possible,” Anderson said. “Looking forward to working with the vets like Juju (McDowell), show me the ropes of how it is done in the running back room. He has been a good leader, helping me along the way. Being able to seize every opportunity possible, no matter what it is, I am just blessed to be able to do that.”

Anderson thinks his tape speaks for itself as to what type of running back the Gamecocks landed out of the NCAA Transfer Portal.

“I believe I have an old-school style, like a Marshall Faulk or Marshawn Lynch,” Anderson said. “I have speed. I can run through you, run past you. I am pretty effective in all three phases of the game in the running back aspect.

One of the biggest things that Anderson is having to get used to from the transition to South Carolina from Newberry is the every day grind that comes with being an SEC running back.

“One of the biggest things is probably the weight room, the work ethic,” Anderson said. “It is a constant grind every day. There is no room for mediocre or to be slack or anything like that. You just really have to bring it every day and I think that is really the biggest thing is the weight room, for me."

After entering the transfer portal, Anderson said the relationships that he built with running backs coach Montario Hardesty and the rest of the coaching staff is one thing that led him to becoming a Gamecock.

“Just the relationship I kind of built with coach Mo throughout the whole process while I was in the transfer portal,” Anderson said. “He was very honest and blunt with me. Coach Beamer, everyone else kind of called me through the phone or whatnot. … Just the personal relations and connections that I got with the coaches and everybody and I knew some of the players on the team already, so it was kind of a no-brainer to me.”

Before he had decided to transfer to South Carolina, Anderson could see the direction that head coach Shane Beamer has his program trending after another strong year in 2022.

“What coach Beamer is building here, it is nothing slight,” Anderson said. “He wants excellence. You can sense that just not even being in the building. Just on social media and how the team carries itself. Just being able to be here in person and actually see it and hearing from the guys, it made my decision a lot easier. … I believe that coach Beamer is taking the right direction.”

Beamer was impressed with what he saw on film from the Gamecocks new running back when they were recruiting him out of the portal and is eager to see how he performs when they put the pads on in a couple of weeks.

"I know some of our recruiting staff people early on had seen his video and they were like, 'This guy has something to him and is a really good player.' Watched it myself and you just saw a lot of production," Beamer said in a press conference on Thursday morning. "You saw a lot of touchdown runs for a really good team and a really good program. We had Pete Lembo and Clayton White watch his tape to get their perspective on him. You saw the skillset and you saw the things that you want to see out of a running back.

"He is a talented guy. Just watching him run around in workouts, he has some explosiveness to him and is a strong young man. Excited to watch him on the field in the next couple of weeks once we get out there and actually start practicing football."

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With spring practice set to start on March 14, Anderson won’t take the opportunity that he has with the Gamecocks for granted.

“Just every day, I wake up blessed,” Anderson said. “Not everyone has an opportunity to play college ball and it is a slimmer percentage to play at this high of a level. Just being able to wake up and drive to the facility every day and work out every day, it is a blessing.”

Mario Anderson is ready to seize the moment.

That was the message the new South Carolina running back gave ahead of the Gamecocks’ start to spring practice.

Anderson, a transfer from nearby Newberry College, will have a chance to earn the starting running back position with the departure of MarShawn Lloyd to Southern Cal. He and returnee JuJu McDowell head to spring practice next week as the likely candidates to be the team’s top tailback.

Anderson said McDowell has helped with the transition and showed him the ropes since his arrival at USC in January.

The former Stratford High standout earned All-American honors last season at Newberry and left the school with 3,301 yards (third most in school history) and 35 touchdowns.

“I come in with a little sense of hunger and just to seize every opportunity that I can,” Anderson told reporters last week. “... Every day I wake up blessed. Not everyone has the opportunity to play college ball. It is a slimmer percentage to play at this level. It is a blessing to wake up and drive to the facility every day.”

Stratford coach Dennie McDaniel saw first-hand Anderson’s hunger in high school — and it still continues. Anderson stopped by the school in Goose Creek this week for a workout while USC was on spring break.

McDaniel was at Stratford for Anderson’s final two years. He was an assistant coach during his junior year and then head coach for Anderson’s final season. Anderson sat out his sophomore year of high school after transferring back to South Carolina after attending school in Ohio.

Anderson served on the scout team as a high school sophomore became the feature back his final two years, rushing for more than 1,000 yards in both his junior and senior seasons at Stratford.

Anderson initially committed to Charleston Southern but ended up at Newberry after a coaching change at CSU.

While Anderson’s running ability stood out, he continued to push and demand excellence from teammates during workouts, McDaniel said, encouraging them to finish reps and persevere through adversity.

“He called somebody out when they weren’t doing what they were supposed to be doing,” McDaniel said. “He would hold people to a certain standard.. He is by far one of the most talented guys I have ever coached but the hardest worker as well.”

McDaniel said Anderson told him he was thinking of putting his name in the transfer portal and hoped to finish his career at a bigger school. USC running backs coach Montario Hardesty called McDaniel to talk about Anderson and the Gamecocks’ interest in him.

“I reached out to Mario after I talked to Coach Hardesty. I told him I gave them your number and Mario started laughing and said something like, ‘Yeah right, coach,’ ” McDaniel said. “He called me back two hours later and said they had a great conversation. Then, that is when the relationship started to build.”

Anderson committed to the Gamecocks shortly after that. He’s one of nine transfers USC landed during the first transfer portal window that closed Jan. 18.

The 5-foot-9, 208-pound Anderson described his running as an “old-school style” and compared it to Marshawn Lynch, who was known to run defenders over during his college and NFL career. But McDaniel also said Anderson has the speed to back up with his power.

“He is a power back with some speed. He is not going to juke you 10 times on a run. He will make one cut and if he gets a crease he is going to take it to the house,” McDaniel said. “... He is excited. I think he thought at first USC might be a little big for him, but he realizes this is where he belongs. And I think he will have a great year.”