Some Beaufort County businesses ran afoul of state safety regulations, according to records contained in this month’s board materials for the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
Among them was the Hampton Inn, owned by Columbia Sun Hotel LLC and located on William Pope Avenue in Bluffton. A July consent order listed a violation from the previous month related to state swimming pool regulations. The hotel paid a $400 fine for an unsecured ladder and handrail and chlorine and pH levels that fell outside the acceptable range, no signs posted that said “No Lifeguard On Duty – Swim At Your Own Risk.” State records also said information about the pool operator was not posted; and the log book was not available for officials to review.
Another listed in regulatory records was the Battery Point Homeowners Association Inc. of Beaufort, which was fined $400 for lapses in the upkeep of its kiddie pool upkeep.
In May officials inspected and noted violations similar to the Bluffton hotel. However, with the kiddie pool, the disinfection equipment and the automatic controller weren’t working.
But swimming pools weren’t the only sites flagged by regulators who checked out Beaufort County facilities.
Sake House, located at 1017 Fording Island Road in Bluffton, was fined $500 for failing to maintain proper holding temperatures. The restaurant must maintain proper temperature control of the shrimp and “all potentially hazardous foods” that it prepares during all phases of its handling. Agency records also state that the representative of Sake House must complete a food protection manager certification course.
No Jasper County establishments received civil fines in the most recent batch of agency documents.
The local fines were small compared to others issued across the state.
For instance, Shiv Mart of Chapin in Lexington County, which operates a public water system, was fined $8,000. Officials said the operator of Shiv Mart violated the State Primary Drinking Water Regulations when the system exceeded the maximum contaminant level for total coliform, among other problems.