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At least three deaths in rural Chesterfield County, South Carolina over the past twenty-four hours have been attributed to the Palmetto State’s worsening fentanyl epidemic, sources familiar with the situation have confirmed to this media outlet.
Our media outlet is awaiting official word from the county coroner’s office on the identities of the victims – and their causes of death – but friends and family of all three victims are citing overdoses as being responsible for the deaths.
Two of the three overdose victims were reportedly discovered in a hotel room in Cheraw, S.C. over the weekend. Detail regarding the third alleged overdose were not immediately available.
Veteran reporter Tonya Brown of WPDE TV-15 (ABC – Florence/ Myrtle Beach) referenced the hotel deaths in a post on her Facebook page, indicating Chesterfield County coroner Kip Kiser‘s investigation was “ongoing.”

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“Please be aware of recent overdoses!” a notice from Alpha, a local behavioral health system, warned. “Substances such as Fentanyl are extremely potent and increase risk of overdose. It can be mixed with other substances without knowing.”
The warning specifically referenced “multiple overdoses recently in Chesterfield County – specifically in the Cheraw area.”
Fentanyl overdoses are of particular concern – especially in South Carolina – as the numbers of victims in the Palmetto State continues to surge. In 2012, there were 572 overdose deaths according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC). By 2021, that number had grown to 1,734 overdose deaths – with 1,100 involving fentanyl.
Located approximately eight miles south of the border with North Carolina on U.S. Highway 1, Cheraw is home to nearly 5,000 people. Like many rural towns, its population has been steadily shrinking in recent decades.
Keep it tuned to this media outlet for updates as they become available …
BANNER: Evanoco/ Wikimedia Commons
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina and before that he was a bass guitarist and dive bar bouncer. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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