Sports-related concussions more than double in SC
The number of sports-related concussions in South Carolina has more than doubled between 1998 and 2011, The State reported.
The highest rates of concussions by far were among children between 12 and 18 years old, according to a recently released study by the Medical University of South Carolina.
Researchers found that the rate of concussion in South Carolina increased from 19.7 per 100,000 people in 1998 to 45.6 in 2011. The increases have been consistent through the years, though some of the increase could be due to increased awareness and reporting by physicians, according to researchers.
Many South Carolina schools have put concussion protocols in place to remove players from practices and games if they have been concussed. A law was passed this year by the state legislature codifying the
evaluation and treatment of concussions in high schools.
McKinney expected to launch campaign today
Charleston developer Pat McKinney will announce plans run for lieutenant governor today, The State reported.
McKinney will run as a Republican for the post currently held by Glenn McConnell, also a Republican. State Rep. Bakari Sellers, D-Bamberg, has also said he intends to run.
McKinney, 63, currently serves on Gov. Nikki Haley’s re-election campaign finance team, as he did for her first run in 2010. He has also been appointed by Haley to the State Ports Authority and is on the board of her foundation.
McKinney also headed a political group that bought $400,000 in ads for Haley’s first gubernatorial campaign and was credited with jump-starting her primary bid.
Haley’s campaign said the governor is “staying out” of the race for the No. 2 government position in the state and that she did not have any influence over McKinney’s decision.
Healthy baby born after mother jumps to escape fire
After jumping from a burning building while seven months pregnant, a Rock Hill woman has delivered a healthy baby, the (Rock Hill) Herald reported.
Mandi Coley was getting ready for her 4:30 a.m. shift at Bojangles’ when the fire tore through Oak Hollow Apartments. The stairs outside were blocked with smoke and fire. Coley and her boyfriend, Samuel White, saw jumping as the only option.
White jumped first and tried to catch her. He broke her fall and the fetus was unharmed. Coley only sustained a few bumps and bruises.
Coley later delivered her daughter, Ja’Leyah Shanel White, on Labor Day. The family moved into a first-floor apartment in the same complex.
A downstairs neighbor was later charged with intentionally setting the fire. Police say Suyatta Johnson, 28, set her boyfriend on fire as he slept.