Mobile Home Sales in Eastover, SC

After months of construction and repairs, Eastover's water is finally safe to drink again.

EASTOVER, S.C. — A bit of relief for many in Eastover after months of concerns over their water quality.

Bruce Edwards, a resident of Eastover, describes the headache he faced when the town was having water issues in late 2022

"They were handing out flyers saying boil the water because something was wrong with the system, low pressure, sometimes the water was off, " he said.

According to Eastover Mayor Philip Gunter, during the colder months, the town saw around 20 different leaks on water mains in the town

"The system was kinda dirty, so we had to a lot of hydrant flushing, " said the mayor.

Those issues got SCDHEC attention.

An enforcement order from December claims a team from DHEC rated the town 'unsatisfactory' for drinking water and said it 'needed improvement' in areas such as protection from contamination and source quality.

Gunter says it's been a team effort trying to improve those scores.

In a Thursday DHEC board meeting, members touted a recent EPA survey that gave the agency good marks for South Carolina's water quality.

Gunter says the town's water quality is back to DHEC's standards.

"They did their job, they wanted us to do our job as well and let it be known that it's serious out there." He says, "The water is pretty good right now, we've had a lot of success with the water."

Gunter adds crews have been working hard since the winter to get back on track.

"Making sure the line pumps and different things like that are working properly. During the winter storm things like that burst and got destroyed, some parts got broken, pipes got broken, all inside the well. I can say we're about 90%, we still got some really small things that we got to work on that's going to take some outside help to come in," said the mayor.

Edwards admits he is still a bit weary of the tap water, but for Mayor Gunter, consuming the town's tap water is something he does daily.

"I trust the water, I drink the water."

After a crash Saturday, night residents continue to see discolored water.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — We’re on your side tonight with details on a water issue in the Town of Eastover. Residents contacted News 19 about discolored water two days after the town restored water service after a brief outage.

“This is the water out of the faucet when you’re trying to cook. Yet they’re telling us in Eastover that the water is good," Eastover resident Jennifer White said in a video of water from her faucet on Sunday. "It’s not gonna get clean."

White said this problem continued into Monday with murky brown water running from her faucet.

“This morning no, same thing," White said. "So, I’ve been going, my friend allowed me to go down to her house in Hickory Hill and get some of that well water. That’s what we’ve been washing and cooking with."

According to the Eastover Mayor Phillip Gunter, a car crash on Saturday started the problem.

“Because we got that small pressurized system right now ... someone hit a fire hydrant and caused the whole town to lose water,” Gunter said.

That crash was worse than it would have been in normal circumstances because Gunter said the town is in the process of making repairs to its large main water tower.

That means, for now, they’re on a smaller alternate system.

“The town had to go to a temporary tank," Gunter said. "So, it’s basically a smaller tank operating the town’s water right now.”

While water service was restored quickly, the smaller system doesn’t have as much power to clear debris and dirt from all the water lines. The larger system has more power.

As a result some residents still have brown water.

The mayor said the city is testing the water to ensure its safety and people are urged to boil their water before drinking or using it for cooking until further notice.

The mayor added this water clearout could take anywhere between two days and a week and a half.

EASTOVER, S.C. - Air National Guard units from South Carolina, Alabama, the District of Columbia and Tennessee participated in Emergency Management Battlefield Expeditionary Response training, also known as Fox EMBER, May 2-7.

The 21 Airmen conducted training at a specially constructed mock village at the McCrady Training Center to simulate an austere overseas location.

The 169th Civil Engineer Squadron’s Emergency Management flight designed the training to get Airmen off the grid and into an unrestrictive environment. The training replicates real-world scenarios involving chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear events that Airmen may experience in a deployed location.

South Carolina Air National Guard personnel with emergency management, medical, bioenvironmental, security and weapons of mass destruction specialties trained together for six days.

Although the SCANG develops and maintains the required CBRN specialties at McEntire Joint National Guard Base, the training location at McCrady offers greater possibilities, according to U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Jamie Powell, installation emergency manager assigned to the 169th Civil Engineer Squadron and Fox EMBER exercise lead.

“Our mission has changed, and McCrady’s got the facilities we need. We have all this cool equipment, and we get to take it out there,” Powell said.

The day before the exercise at McCrady, the Fox EMBER participants reported to McEntire JNGB to receive a refresher course on CBRN detection equipment and procedures from U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Ja’maal Mosely, a weapons of mass destruction instructor assigned to the South Carolina National Guard’s 43rd Civil Support Team.

To get the fully deployed experience, the Airmen stayed at McCrady’s barracks throughout the exercise to simulate deployment conditions.

“Everything we are doing here is set up to be done downrange overseas,” Powell said. “All these things can also be used domestically if we have to support the civil support team in a response.”

Although the Airmen were briefed about the simulated threats leading up to the exercise, the instructors left some information out to maintain the element of surprise.

Participants examined homemade laboratories used to make explosive devices and biological weapons. They also encountered a makeshift tunnel and a vehicle that contained suspected terror threats.

The instructors observed and graded the participants’ responses while providing real-time guidance.

Three teams of Airmen used clues left in each location by the exercise adversary, a site map, and their instincts to guide them through the course.

U.S. Air Force Airman 1st Class Angelica Gonzalez, emergency management specialist assigned to the 169th Civil Engineer Squadron, explained the advantages of getting off base for this larger-scale training.

“Back at our workshop, we usually test the equipment and practice, but we don’t have real-life things or simulations we can test,” she said. “So, coming out here and putting on the MOPP [Mission Oriented Protective Posture] gear with all these other outside factors such as environmental noises changes how you can handle these types of equipment.”

Powell said the participating Airmen came away with invaluable training experience, equipping them for actual deployments.

The money comes as part of the American Rescue Plan Act supporting communities around the nation following the pandemic.

RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. — More than $300,000 will go to the Town of Eastover as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) supporting communities around the country.

Over the last few months, News19 has spotlighted how cities and towns are using their share of millions distributed around the country as part of the Act.

Like many communities, Mayor Phillip Gunter said Eastover has received half of its funds. The town is expecting roughly $330,000 in total.

"It means a lot for the town," Mayor Gunter said. "We really need it to uplift our water system for safer water for the community... also to help out with some of our infrastructure."

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He says they've already started spending the money on water and sewer projects, including improvements to the town's water tower, but there's still a lot more to do to revitalize the rural community, which has fewer than 1,000 residents.

"We had everything when I was a little boy, you know?," Mayor Gunter said. "The video store, the bank was there then, the little grocery store we had.... So, I just want to see those things come back to Eastover."

They're petitioning the state for additional dollars to continue making improvements with a focus on downtown developments.

"We need that grocery store; we need a laundry mat," Gunter said. "So, those are the kind of things that I'm really trying to concentrate on.... Painting of buildings and those kinds of things."

RELATED: DHEC to study disaster response in Columbia's Lower Richland community

Mildred McMillian spent her life in Eastover and says she's excited for the opportunity to see the community improve.

"Just helping the town out, so it can be just like some of the other places around here... that this town become a little more beautified than it is," McMillian said. "It's just like a family over the whole town. Everybody getting along together....They're trying to do the best they can in this town."

The mayor says he's also working with Richland County to try to bring a new sheriff's department substation, strengthening available services for residents.

EASTOVER, S.C. — A $70,000 grant from the USDA is helping the Eastover Community Garden expand.

The current 1,800 square foot plot behind the Richland Library Eastover will soon become 9,000 square feet.

Inspired by his stepfather's love for gardening, Michael Dantzler started the Eastover community garden in 2014. Dantzler took a break from 2016 to 2020 and started back up in 2021.

Dantzler said applying for the grant was a "long process," taking four months to complete and two months to hear back.

Until now, Dantzler has relied on his own money along with community donations to keep the garden running. Looking at the small garden, Dantzler calls it humble beginnings.

The USDA grant will allow him to carry out everything he's envisioned.

"I really want to expand. I want it to be full of plants. Perennials, annuals, native plants," said Dantzler.

The garden already grows a myriad of plants such as potatoes, peppers, collard greens, and even sunflowers.

Everything grown in the garden is given back to the community.

RELATED: Town of Irmo plans to distribute COVID-19 relief grants to local non-profits soon

The town of Eastover is known as a food desert-- an area that has limited access to affordable and nutritious food. The closest grocery store is 20 minutes away.

“It means a ton to me. It’s really important to us that this community has access to healthy, safe, and fresh food,” said volunteer Krystal Price.

Price said the grant money will also allow organic food to be grown at the garden, a commodity many rural areas can't afford.

"Being able to homegrown organic pesticide produce for the community is what I'm most excited for," said Price.

Dantzler said the goal of the garden is about feeding people's minds as well.

"That's really my gesture here is to get people more involved in the process and get people to know their own power,” said Dantzler.

The Eastover Native described the garden as a "sanctuary" for the community--a place where they can come together and do good.

"This is a wide-open space that we can come together," said Dantzler.

The Eastover Community Garden will now be among a larger network, the South Carolina Food Connection Community Garden with sites around the state.

If you're interested in volunteering for the garden, you can go to the Get Involved LR Facebook Page.