South Carolina man charged with arson after three separate fires were found, officials say
A South Carolina man was recently charged with arson after three separate blazes were discovered, according to the state’s Forestry Commission.
Windell McDaniel, a 63-year-old Hemingway resident, was charged with three counts of arson in Georgetown County, the South Carolina Forestry Commission said Monday in a news release.
“None of the fires McDaniel is alleged to have ignited were related to any other (recent) Georgetown County wildfires ... one of which grew to 130 acres and threatened homes on Arcadia Plantation Drive, prompting a days-long response from Forestry Commission and local (firefighters),” officials said.
A statewide burn ban was put in place March 2, and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency the following day because of wildfires that raged across the Palmetto State. In fact, the S.C. Forestry Commission’s burn ban in Georgetown County was only lifted Sunday.
McDaniel deliberately set three fires with an improvised incendiary device, according to the release.
The fires were started along Deep Creek Drive, which connects S.C. 261 and Barnhill Road, the S.C. Forestry Commission said. That’s about 6 miles southeast of downtown Hemingway, and more than 40 miles west of Myrtle Beach.
Deep Creek Drive is also 30 miles north of the wildfires in the Arcadia Plantation Drive area.
On March 1, a S.C. Forestry Commission officer responded to a call about a woods fire and discovered three separate fires along the road, according to the release.
Near one of the fires, the officer found a soft drink bottle containing what was believed to be kerosene along with a rag that also smelled of kerosene, S.C. Forestry Commission officials said.
During an investigation, camera footage showed a truck registered to McDaniel in the area around the time the fires were started, according to the release. Investigators interviewed McDaniel on March 3, and that was when he was arrested, according to the release.
There was no word about a motive for setting the fires.
McDaniel was booked into the Georgetown County Detention Center, S.C. Forestry Commission officials said. Bond was set at $15,000 on the combined charges and was posted March 4, jail records show.
If convicted on the felony arson charges, McDaniel faces a maximum punishment of 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each count, according to South Carolina law.
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This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 9:45 AM.
