Mattress storein Ladson, SC

The Auto Care Association announced the latest recipients of the World Class Technician Award in partnership with the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE). The two organizations provide this annual recognition to professional technicians who have attained ASE certification in 22 specific areas during the previous calendar year.

ASE says there are an estimated 887,000 technicians in the United States, with approximately 250,000 holding ASE certification. As of now, there are 2,224 technicians who have earned the respected status of “World Class Technician” since its inception more than 30 years ago, according to ASE.

The class of 2023 World Class Technicians is:

Anthony H. Caputa – Arnold, Mo. Arlen Parker Hart – Athens, Ga. Bobby Leatherman – Stony Point, N.C. Bradley Kilwy – Plano, Texas Brian Ward – Denton, N.C. Bryan Jensen – Apple Valley, Calif. Craig Wilkins – Fillmore, Calif. Dale Collins – Orange Park, Fla. Daniel Hammond – Indianapolis, Ind. Daniel Indovina – Centennial, Conn. David Yentema – Macedon, N.Y. Don Verville – Cape Coral, Fla. Gordon Marr – Yorba Linda, Calif. Gregg Brinlee – Detroit, Mich. Gregory Pheasant – Sparks, Nev. James Moody – Heber Springs, Ark. Jarod Johnson – Lubbock, Texas Jason Kirby – Groveland, Fla. Jeff Autery – St. Louis, Mo. Joel A. Pritchard – Warren, Mich. John Lewins – Nashville, Tenn. John Vaccarello – Detroit, Mich. Jon Ewing –Detroit, Mich. Jorden Ellis – Corpus Christi, Texas Luke Plant – Edmond, Okl. Marcus Buchholz – Detroit, Mich. Mario Monsivais – Houston, Texas Matt York – Canton, Ga. Michael Gavrielides – Winterville, Ga. Nathaniel A. Dillard – Brookwood, Ala. Paul Bostel – Apple Valley, Minn. Paul French – Dallas, Pa. Robert Bridges – Omaha, Neb. Rodney Prince – Henderson, Nev. Roger Abbey – Rochester, N.Y. Russell Andrew Ringling – Warrenton, Va. Ryan Woods – Old Bridge, N.J. Sam Mott – Moncks Corner, S.C. Shawn Williams – Ladson, S.C. Thomas Kepler – Curtice, Ohio Tyler Grahl – Newport, Tenn. Victor Hasstedt – Hollister, Calif. William P. Link –Virginia Beach, Va. William Pickham – Bensonville, Ill.

For more information about the Auto Care Association’s World Class Technician certification qualifications, timing and recognition, visit the association’s World Class Technician webpage.

For more information about ASE and service professional certification, visit ase.com.

Consulates from up to six countries will be at the Exchange Park in Ladson to provide services to their citizens.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - Consulates from up to six countries will be at the Exchange Park in Ladson to provide services to their citizens.

Charleston’s first International Consulate Day will be held on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to noon. Consulates will be coming from Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, and possibly Argentina and Ecuador to offer services for their citizens.

The Latin Exchange Club of Charleston and the Exchange Club of Charleston say this event is the first time consulates from this many countries have come together in the city.

Organizers say they have been reaching out to different consulates for over a year now trying to get all the countries to come to Charleston at the same time to make it one big fair. They say they expect a turnout of a couple of thousand people.

According to the Latin Exchange Club President Enrique Grace, consulates will provide help for their citizens including passport and birth certificate services, ID card renewals and more. Grace said each consulate is different in what they ask their citizens to bring but any form of identification from your country for proof of identity should be presented.

He said the process should not take longer than 30 minutes and hopes people are able to do walk-ups at their consulate. He says for the Dominican Republic and El Salvador walk-ups are welcome.

The Latin Exchange Club is part of the National Exchange Club which has been around for nearly 115 years. The Latin Exchange Club in Charleston is the first Latin club in its history and they help the Hispanic community due to the language barrier.

Grace said the Hispanic community is growing rapidly in Charleston and in the state of South Carolina and hopes this event creates inclusivity within the Charleston community for all immigrants.

“Part of the idea is to show that Charleston is a welcoming city for foreigners,” Grace said. “Whether it’s Hispanic or other people that are immigrating from other countries. This one is a Hispanic event we hope to bring consulates from other countries as well.”

A free health fair from participating organizations such as Shifa Clinic, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Medical University of South Carolina, Palmetto CAP, and others is open to anyone and will be happening at the same time where the public can receive vaccines, testing, and other resources for people who may need other medical attention.

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LADSON, S.C. (WCBD) – Several people are sifting through what is left of their belongings after a major fire broke out at a Ladson storage facility on Tuesday morning.

The emergency call came in at 7:46 a.m. saying Ladson Self Storage was on fire. The fire destroyed a dozen units at the facility off Highway 78.

Wesley Cliff, who owns Living Rock Landscapes, keeps tools, equipment, and some vehicles for his company at the storage facility.

“I was on my way to work this morning and I pull up to the front of the gate and there’s a guy out there – he’s bleeding from his head, and he just asked for help, and call 9-1-1,” said Cliff.

Cliff said he was just trying to figure out what was going on.

“I look in through the gate and I see up there, I mean there’s smoke everywhere. So, I drive to the back and there’s multiple units on fire,” he recalled.

The fire was ripping through the storage units.

“There was another guy running from the back- he’s coming up to the front saying call 911, and about that time these guys were already here, and they pulled in there and they started getting everything unloaded and started fighting the fire and cutting the doors open. It was a pretty big fire. Got pretty big for a minute,” said Cliff.

12 units were destroyed by fire or heavy smoke damage.

“Units went to work immediately pulling hand lines, starting to extinguish the fire,” explained Battalion Chief Charles Evans with C&B Fire Department.

Numerous fire departments responded. The cause of the fire is undetermined at this point.

And as for the man with blood on his head, officials told News 2 he had minor injuries that did not require EMS transportation.

“Sounds like he was in the unit, perhaps fell down a ladder or some stairs, and one of the units when he was trying to get away to report the fire,” said Batt. Chief Evans.

“Luckily for us, it wasn’t one of our units. But unfortunately, there were some other contractors back there. It was their units; it’s a total loss for those guys. It’s sad that that stuff happens, but they got here fast, they got it put out pretty quickly,” said Cliff.

Crews were on the scene for several hours as they worked to extinguish the flames.

LADSON, S.C. (WCBD)- The annual Coastal Carolina Fair is underway at Exchange Park in Ladson.

Most fairgoers have their eyes and stomachs on fair food for the first day.

“They always have good food and it’s just a good time to spend with family. They have a little arts and crafts center where you can see the students’ local talents,” said Jasmine Kelly.

“Sausage dogs and French fries. Walk around and look and see what’s going on,” said Woody Barsha.

One of the new food items on the menu is an Oreo cookie crusted turkey leg.

“No I don’t think so I’ll stick to French fries,” said Barsha.

“I can’t eat that much, but I will have an elephant ear,” said Kelly.

There are 10 new rides this year as well. One of them is a Ferris Wheel that’s 12 stories tall and comes from The Netherlands.

Fair organizers say that those new attraction and food items are great additions, but having a full-scale fair is also something to celebrate.

“We’re really excited about opening up because this is the first really big open fair we’ve had since COVID-19 has happened. We say ‘New in 22,’ and that’s what we’re doing because we have brand new rides, we have many new food vendors so we’re really excited about starting the year off right,” said Gary Leonard from the office of Media and Publicity Relations at the Coastal Carolina Fair.

Most families make the fair a tradition, but it’s even more special for Dan Caskey.

“Today’s my birthday. Every year I have a party and bring this to town to share with everybody else. It’s a great tradition. We love coming out here and having a fun time with the family,” said Caskey.

The fair runs for 12 days and hours of operation can be found here. A calendar of events can be found here.

LADSON, S.C. (WCIV) — It's that time of year again! The annual Coastal Carolina Fair kicks off this week in Ladson with some brand new rides and foods.

The fair opens this Thursday and Friday from 3 to 9 p.m.

This year's fair will run from Thursday, Oct. 27 to Sunday, Nov. 6.

RIDES

There will be around 65 rides in total this year, including some new ones.

Thrill seekers will be excited to see the largest rollercoaster AND Ferris wheel they've had yet. The Ferris wheel is over 100-ft tall.

“We’ve got a brand-new carnival. It’s a big deal for us. We had a very long relationship with the last one, and this one had some opportunities to bring some new coasters, rollercoasters in. Some great rides, and we just couldn’t pass it up,” said Coastal Carolina Fair’s media relations spokesperson, Jay Wallace.

The Coastal Carolina Fair returns Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. ABC News 4 reporter Sean Mahoney spoke to organizers about fair rides. (WCIV)

FOOD

A wide variety of tasty treats are on the menus: barbeque sandwiches, cinnamon rolls, bread pudding, funnel cakes, deep fried brownies- and the list goes on and gets more creative.

Some other options will include funnel cakes, elephant ears, and award-winning jalapeno corndogs.

Be sure to look out for the Oreo-encrusted turkey leg!

ENTERTAINMENT

In addition to rides and food, fairgoers will find lots of other entertainment.

The Coastal Carolina Fair returns Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. ABC News 4 reporter Sean Mahoney spoke to organizers about the petting zoo. (WCIV)

TICKETS

Coastal Carolina Fair officials suspended online ticket sales until further notice after fraudulent activity was detected Wednesday.

Tickets can be purchased at Circle K stores or at the fair gates for the time being.

Credit and cash are accepted at the gate ticket booths, but only credit is accepted at the kiosks located at each entry gate.

Fair officials said do not buy tickets from people that approach you or posted online.

Check the fair's calendar for special discount days for seniors and more.

TICKET PRICES THROUGH OCTOBER 26TH:

TICKET PRICES BEGINNING OCTOBER 27TH:

The Coastal Carolina Fair returns Thursday, Oct. 27, 2022. ABC News 4 reporter Sean Mahoney spoke to organizers about fair safety, attendance expectations, and charities helped. (WCIV)

SAFETY

The use of metal detectors and a clear plastic bag policy will continue for this season, and that there will be plenty of security. Some of it will be around the clock during the fair’s two-week run.

“The No. 1 rule we have around here that tells us if we’ve had a good fair is if we’ve had a safe fair," said Coastal Carolina Fair’s media relations spokesperson Jay Wallace.

All rides are inspected by multiple agencies, Grimm said.