Personal Injury Attorney in Spartanburg, SC

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A weather alert was issued by the NWS Greenville-Spartanburg SC on Wednesday at 4:58 p.m. for strong thunderstorms until 5:30 p.m. for Spartanburg County.

Brace for pea-sized hail (0.25 inches) and wind gusts of up to 40 mph.

"At 4:58 p.m., Doppler radar tracked a strong thunderstorm 8 miles south of Spartanburg, or near Moore. This storm was nearly stationary," explains the NWS. "Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to outdoor objects is possible."

Locations impacted by the alert include Roebuck, Moore, Croft State Park and Pauline.

The NWS comments, "If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building. This storm may intensify, so be certain to monitor local radio stations and available television stations for additional information and possible warnings from the National Weather Service."

This alert is in effect until 5:30 p.m.

Lightning strikes the United States about 25 million times a year. Most of the strikes occur in the summer, killing 20 people each year, according to the NWS. Chance of lightning increases as a thunderstorm approaches and peaks when the storm is overhead. It diminishes as the storm moves away.

Here are suggestions for staying safe during a thunderstorm:

If finding indoor shelter is not an option:

What is hydroplaning?

Hydroplaning is the term for when a vehicle begins sliding uncontrollably on wet roads.

This happens when water in front of the tire builds up faster than the vehicle's weight can push water out of the way. The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control. Hydroplaning is primarily caused by three factors:

In the event of your vehicle hydroplaning, here's what to know:

Source: The National Weather Service

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SPARTANBURG, S.C. —

A proposed data center will not move forward after the Spartanburg County Board of Zoning Appeals denied the developer’s appeal Tuesday.

The project, proposed in part by LightHouse Data Centers, would’ve covered about 151 acres along Jones Road and would have included an approximately 200,000-square-foot building. County planning staff previously denied the development application, prompting the company to appeal the decision.

During Tuesday’s meeting, LightHouse CEO Nick Etschied argued that his company has invested more than $28 million in the project and that it would create about 50 jobs.

Opponents of the project continued to speak out against the proposal.

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“We don't want these data centers in our community, and they're being forced on us. No transparency whatsoever,” said Spartanburg resident Eric Allison. “People keep showing up because it's important to the people of Spartanburg County.”

Allison runs a Facebook group against the implementation of data centers that has garnered more than 8000 members. The group planned to pack the county administration building for Tuesday’s meeting.

The Board of Zoning Appeals ultimately denied LightHouse's appeal, leaving the county planning staff's original denial in place, citing non-compliance items in the project and the proposed Spartanburg County data center moratorium.

The Jones Road proposal is separate from the much larger Valara data center project on South Pine Street, which is also facing opposition and legal challenges. The Valara project is nearly 300 acres and involves a proposed $3 billion data center and power facility.

Spartanburg County Council has also delayed a final vote on the proposed moratorium on new data center development until September.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - The South Carolina Public Service Commission dismissed a challenge in the dispute between Spartanburg County residents and a data center under construction.

The project at the center of the fight is the Valara data center on South Pine Street.

The South Carolina Environmental Law Center argues the company is building a natural gas-fired power plant to serve the data center without complying with state requirements. A resident asked the Public Service Commission to review that argument.

Valara says it does not need approval from the commission because it is purely a private company generating private energy.

The commission dismissed the Law Center’s argument, ruling it does not have jurisdiction over the matter. The commission ruled Valara, as a private business, is not subject to certain state utility rules.

Valara gave the following statement after the ruling:

Spartanburg County residents also responded to the ruling:

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The South Carolina Public Service Commission will not scrutinize a natural gas plant being built by and for a data center in Spartanburg County, bucking the state watchdog’s recommendation.

The utility regulators voted unanimously Thursday to side with a data center developer and dismiss a petition from local residents and an environmental group. The group of residents, labeled in the docket as “Concerned Citizens of Spartanburg County,” and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy asked the Public Service Commission to require developer Valara Holdings to obtain a certificate for its planned natural gas plant from the utility regulators before continuing construction.

Doing otherwise could keep important information about the project, like its environmental impact, hidden from the public, lawyers for the Spartanburg residents argued in the docket filing.

The Office of Regulatory Staff, a state utility watchdog, agreed the data center developer should be required to seek approval from the PSC, in a docket filing.

Commissioner David Britt, who represents Spartanburg, did not vote and was not in the room during discussion, Commissioner Delton Powers noted. The Public Service Commission also agreed Thursday only the Office of Regulatory Staff could bring private companies in front of regulators for enforcement of the state’s siting law.

Valara Holdings wants to operate 45 natural gas-fuel generators and 11 natural gas turbines, according to permit applications with the state Department of Environmental Services. The department has granted the first of two requested environmental permits for the project.

The natural gas plant will power a data center being built by Valara Holdings, whose parent company is NorthMark Strategies.

Valara Holdings asked the utility regulators to dismiss the request from members of the public, which the PSC ultimately granted. Lawyers for the developer argued during a public hearing the more than 450 megawatt natural gas plant should not be subject to PSC scrutiny because Valara Holdings won’t generate power for the public.

“We are pleased with today’s unanimous ruling from the Public Service Commission, which agreed with our position that businesses generating power for their own use are not subject to South Carolina’s Utility Siting Act,” wrote a NorthMark spokesperson in an email.

“Our operations in Spartanburg County continue, and we remain focused on the work ahead and complying with all applicable laws and regulations,” the statement continued.

The South Environmental Law Center represented the Spartanburg residents in their petition. Kate Mixson, an SELC attorney, slammed the PSC’s decision in a statement, arguing it allowed private companies to violate state siting law.

“As data centers descend on our state, this decision is the equivalent of putting out a calling card to these out-of-state companies: Come to South Carolina, build as large of a power plant as you want to power your data center, and we won’t oversee it,” Mixson said.

The commission still must issue a final order on the decision.

Valara has applied for development permits with Spartanburg County, the subject of a lawsuit, and the state Department of Environmental Services for its data center and natural gas plant.

The $2.8 billion data center development project is being built at 4000 Pine Street in Spartanburg County, with construction continuing through 2028, according to news releases. It includes four proposed buildings, a power yard, internal roadways, a site access road and electrical equipment houses, according to a permit description.

This is a breaking news story and may be updated.

This story was originally published August 27, 2026 at 5:31 PM.

The creation of this content included the use of AI based on templates created, reviewed and edited by journalists in the newsroom. Read more on our AI policy here.

A report was issued from the NWS Greenville-Spartanburg SC on Wednesday at 6:33 p.m. for strong thunderstorms until 7 p.m. for Spartanburg County.

Look for pea-sized hail (0.25 inches) and wind gusts of up to 40 mph.

"At 6:33 p.m., Doppler radar tracked a strong thunderstorm 9 miles south of Rutherfordton, or 8 miles northwest of Chesnee. This storm was nearly stationary," according to the NWS. "Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to outdoor objects is possible."

The alert is for Harris, Fingerville and Green Creek.

The NWS states, "If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building. This storm may intensify, so be certain to monitor local radio stations and available television stations for additional information and possible warnings from the National Weather Service."

This alert is in effect until 7 p.m.

Lightning hits the United States approximately 25 million times annually. The majority of these strikes happen during the summer, causing around 20 fatalities each year, according to the NWS. The likelihood of lightning increases as a thunderstorm gets closer and reaches its highest point when the storm is directly overhead. This risk decreases as the storm moves away.

Here are recommendations for maintaining safety during a thunderstorm:

If finding indoor shelter is not an option:

What is hydroplaning?

Hydroplaning happens when a vehicle starts sliding uncontrollably on wet roads.

This happens when water in front of the tire builds up faster than the vehicle's weight can push water out of the way. The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control. The top three contributors to hydroplaning are:

In the event of your vehicle hydroplaning, here's what to know:

Source: The National Weather Service

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