Midlands misses worst of severe storm system

The threat of severe weather never quite materialized for the Midlands on Wednesday, although counties remained under a tornado watch for most of the day and some areas lost power.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch for several Midlands and Pee Dee counties as storms swept across the Southeast and moved north to Virginia, sparing South Carolina the deadly tornadoes seen in Louisiana, Mississippi and Virginia.

Wind gusts, with minimal rain, caused some property and tree damage because of loosened soil conditions. Coastal and Upstate areas saw heavier rain.

A Darlington man was killed after storms blew through the Pee Dee on Wednesday.

According to Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee, Michael Gaines, Sr., 58, died after he was struck by a falling tree.

Gaines had stopped along the road near his home to remove storm debris from the roadway when the tree fell on him.

Still, SCE&G officials reported that roughly 260 customers were without power around nightfall in Lexington, while at least another 100 customers were without power in North Columbia.

Rachael Myers Lowe, Harrison Cahill, Morning News (Florence)

This story was originally published February 24, 2016 at 3:00 PM.