Wedding & Event Venue near Florence, SC

Someone who bought a ticket prior to Tuesday night’s drawing won the Mega Millions $800 million grand prize, according to South Carolina Education Lottery officials.

Although that ticket was sold in Florida, someone who purchased a Mega Millions game in South Carolina didn’t walk away empty-handed, officials said Wednesday in a news release. A Mega Millions player in Florence narrowly missed out on the game’s grand prize, coming one number short of a stake in the $800,000,000, according to the release.

For coming so close the person who bought the Mega Millions ticket in Florence will receive a $20,000 jackpot, officials said.

Now a search is underway for the winner.

The five-figure winning ticket was sold at the On The Loop gas station/convenience store at 1301 2^nd Loop Road, according to the release.

The winning numbers from Tuesday’s Mega Millions drawing were 34, 48, 49, 59, 70 and Megaball: 12.

The winning ticket bought in Florence matched four white ball numbers and the gold Megaball number, lottery officials said. The Megaplier number was 2, and the prize was doubled from $10,000 to $20,000, officials said.

The odds of matching four white balls and the gold Megaball are 1-in-893,761, according to the release.

The winner has 180 days to claim the prize, according to lottery officials.

The winner will be allowed to retain some privacy, as South Carolina is one of 11 states — along with Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Maryland, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Texas and Virginia — that allow lottery winners to remain anonymous.

“Sign the back of your ticket and put it in a safe location until you’re ready to come forward to claim the prize,” lottery officials said.

For complete information on claiming prizes, go to sceducationlottery.com.

On The Loop will receive a commission for selling the winning ticket, when it is turned into lottery officials.

Because a grand prize winning ticket was sold, the payday for a winner in Friday’s Mega Millions drawing will be $20 million, according to the release.

Tickets are $5, with a megaplier included.

The odds of winning Mega Million’s grand prize are 1-in-290,472,336.

FLORENCE, S.C. (WBTW) — The Medical University of South Carolina Florence on Wednesday broke ground on its new Hollings Cancer Center facility.

This new facility will provide local patients with access to specialized cancer treatments that would typically require travel to Charleston.

The 63,000-square-foot facility aims to extend MUSC’s reach as the only National Cancer Institute in South Carolina and one of 74 such institutes nationwide. This designation signifies that MUSC has passed federal government evaluations for excellence in laboratory research, patient care, prevention and education.

Speakers at Wednesday’s ceremony highlighted the importance of patients receiving care without extensive travel. Dr. Paul Davis, a member of the MUSC Board of Trustees, emphasized the challenges patients often face.

“Many times, these patients have to travel for hours to receive special treatment, whether it be a clinical trial or some special treatment,” Davis said.

Charlene Lowery, a cancer survivor, shared her experience of traveling to Charleston for treatment with her husband. Lowery noted that while they were able to make the journey, it can be a significant obstacle for others, particularly those who are older or lack transportation.

“To have something of this caliber coming here to Florence, where people wouldn’t have to do the traveling, especially the ones that are of age that don’t have transportation,” Lowery said.

She added that instead of inconveniencing family members or paying for transport, patients will now simply need “picking up the phone and getting someone to bring them right here locally.”

The Pee Dee region, where Florence is located, is identified by MUSC as one of South Carolina’s most underserved areas with a high incidence of disease. MUSC Pee Dee Division CEO Jason Cox affirmed the institution’s commitment to the area.

“We would love for everybody there to know that we are making a significant investment right here in The Pee Dee, which is one of the most underserved areas in the state of South Carolina and has one of the highest incidence of disease,” Cox said.

He concluded that this investment is intended to “improve the health and the health outcomes of our community.”

The new Hollings Cancer Center facility is expected to open by the summer of 2027.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WBTW. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WBTW staff before being published.

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Eric Cooper is a multimedia journalist at News13. He joined the team in September 2024 and covers stories in the Pee Dee. He is a native of Cades in Williamsburg County and a proud graduate of Kingstree Senior High School and Benedict College. You can read more of his work here.

FLORENCE — Downtown Florence has undergone many changes through the years, but the next one could bring a new look to Cheves Street.

Downtown Florence, specifically its historical district, has seen various improvements since the mid-2000s, as the city worked to restore the district that had been the subject of demolitions and fires over the 20th century.

Now, the west side of downtown could soon see improved walkability and a prioritization of pedestrians, according to Downtown Development Manager Hannah Davis.

“Our roads from the '50s to now have really been built for cars and not for people, and we're trying to make sure that people have a good experience walking downtown, and it’s not just a place for vehicles,” Davis said.

The Cheves Street Streetscape Project will soon be underway. It will add bike lanes, repair sidewalks, resurface roads and create a “road diet,” that will target speeding and increase safety for those walking in the West Cheves Street area, according to Assistant City Manager Clint Moore.

The project, which is in its design phase now, is expansive, covering the Maple Park area and King and Gregg Avenue, all the way down to Dargan Street, Moore said.

The project will add elements of a pedestrian-oriented streetscape to Cheves Street, according to Moore, including improvements to pedestrian infrastructure and the addition of landscaping and trees that will be planted near the street.

“It will be a showcase and a case study on what we could do throughout Florence,” Moore said of the project.

With other projects ongoing, Cheves Street is already taking on a different look.

Francis Marion University is in the middle of constructing a $22.5 million medical building off of Cheves Street, the C. Edward Floyd Medical Education Consortium building.

It will serve as a place for third- and fourth-year medical students from the University of South Carolina’s medical school to participate in clinical rotations.

The city plans to complete its Cheves Streetscape project around the same time construction wraps up on building, which is expected to be late 2027.

West Cheves Street is also the new home of the Cheves Row Townhomes — a group of six rentable townhomes that are a short walk away from downtown stores and restaurants.

Downtown Florence will also host a walkability exercise in October, where Francis Marion students in the university’s occupational therapy doctorate program will offer the city suggestions on how to improve walkability for 15 blocks downtown.

“We are studying actively how to make downtown more walkable and inclusive for everybody,” Davis said. “The city is taking very seriously the recommendations that are coming from these students and integrating some of the things that they're interested in seeing.”

The exercise will allow the city to see through the eyes of pedestrians while giving students an opportunity to help shape their community, Davis said.

The Carolina Theatre is also expected to reopen in Downtown Florence in the coming months. The more than 100-year-old theater had been abandoned since the 1980s but is being returned to its former glory.

FLORENCE — MUSC Health-Pee Dee Division has named its new CEO.

Jason Cox, who most recently served as interim CEO for MUSC’s Pee Dee Division, assumed the role of CEO on Sept. 22, the company said.

Cox will lead MUSC Health Florence Medical Center, MUSC Health Marion Medical Center, MUSC Health Black River Medical Center and the MUSC Health Jean and Hugh K. Leatherman Behavioral Care Pavilion.

Cox is assuming the role after five years of service with MUSC Health, most recently serving as interim CEO and previously as chief operating officer for the Pee Dee Division.

“It is an honor to serve the communities of the Pee Dee in this role,” Cox said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to continue working alongside our dedicated physicians, care team members and leaders as we build on our momentum and expand access to high-quality care. Together, we will continue advancing MUSC Health’s mission to preserve and optimize human life while improving the health and well-being of the communities we are privileged to serve.”

As COO, Cox played a key role in several transformational initiatives across the Pee Dee Division, according to a Sept. 22 news release.

His accomplishments include helping to lead the opening of MUSC Health Black River Medical Center, advancing plans for the new Jean and Hugh K. Leatherman Behavioral Care Pavilion, improving Emergency Department efficiency and patient experience and increasing operating room utilization across the division.

The Pee Dee Division achieved MUSC Health’s highest employee engagement scores over the past three years, and MUSC Health Marion Medical Center was recognized as a Top 15 Rural Hospital in the nation by The Leapfrog Group in 2025 under Cox’s operational leadership.

“During his time with MUSC Health, Jason has distinguished himself through excellent performance, strong operational leadership and a steadfast commitment to our patients, care team members, physicians and the communities we serve,” said Matt Severance, CEO of the MUSC Regional Health Network. “His proven leadership, deep understanding of the Pee Dee region and dedication to advancing healthcare make him exceptionally well prepared to lead the division into its next chapter.”

Cox brings more than two decades of healthcare leadership experience to the role.

Prior to joining MUSC Health, he served as COO of UNC Health Southeastern and president and CEO of Chestatee Regional Hospital. He began his leadership career in the U.S. Army, where he held healthcare operations and emergency management roles both in the United States and abroad.

A graduate of UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, Cox earned a Master of Business Administration and holds a bachelor’s degree from North Georgia College and State University. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and is Lean Six Sigma black belt trained.

As CEO, Cox will lead ongoing efforts to strengthen clinical services, expand access to care and enhance the patient experience across the Pee Dee region, the release said.

Cox’s appointment follows the beginning of construction on a three-story cancer center located on the MUSC Health Florence Medical Center and the opening of a new dental and oral care clinic that is also within the medical center.