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Goose Creek High School’s girls basketball team recorded its first postseason victory in four years on Tuesday, Feb. 13, fending off pesky, visiting White Knoll High School in the opening round of the Class 5A playoffs.

The Region 6-5A champion Gators improved to 18-8 overall with the 39-33 victory. Coach Jabari Deas’ team hosts Carolina Forest Friday, Feb. 16 in the second round (after press time). The Panthers (17-7) advanced by taking out Fort Dorchester, 49-30. A third-round game would be on Tuesday, Feb. 19 against the winner of Dutch Fork and Summerville.

“We had enough spurts to get it done,” Deas said. “It’s all about survive and advance. We did enough to win. We have some things to work on to get ready for the next one. We need to play better for longer stretches.”

Goose Creek trailed for much of the first half but finished strong in the second quarter to grab a 20-18 halftime lead. The Gators quickly pushed their lead to 11 points with a 9-0 run in the third quarter and never trailed again, but they also didn’t pull away.

“Our defense is our calling card,” Deas said. “If we get out there and play good defense, we can make our offense a little easier. That’s what we do well that gives us a chance.”

Sophomore guard Aiyanna Moses led the Gators with eight points and eighth-grader Celeste Griffin added seven points. Sophomore Natalia Madison and freshman Jalaiya Jacobs chipped in six points and five points.

Regardless of what happens from here on out, the Gators appear to be on the upswing after lying dormant for a few years. After winning the state championship in 2019-20, the Gators missed the playoffs in 2020-21 and fell in the first round to end 2021-22 and 2022-23. There are no seniors on this year’s roster and eight underclassmen can return for multiple seasons.

“We set a goal to win the region and we did that,” Deas said. “We earned the two playoff games at home in our gym. Now, it’s one game at a time.”

Dutch Fork girls 77,

Cane Bay 18

Cane Bay’s girls ended the season with an 8-19 record following a first-round playoff loss at Dutch Fork.

Dutch Fork improved to 23-3.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCIV) — A white dust emitted from the Century Aluminum plant has been spreading through parts of Goose Creek.

Goose Creek Mayor Greg Habib addressed the issue in a social media post on Oct. 2.

Read more: MCRFD: Driver crashes into house in Moncks Corner; crashes again while trying to leave

According to Habib, the white dust is Alumina dust, which is produced during the smelting process. Alumina dust is not supposed to leave the plant and is considered an important component of plant's ability to make more aluminum.

Century Aluminum believes the emissions may be caused by an "unusual" failure in the plant's baghouse, according to Habib.

"As you may know, all exhaust from the manufacturing process runs through a scrubber to clean the air and the Alumina dust is collected into the bags in the baghouse," the mayor said in a statement. "Century Aluminum then takes the dust and reintroduces (it) into the manufacturing process to make more aluminum."

According to Habib, Century Aluminum is looking at two potential possibilities for the emissions. One possibility is a recent change of suppliers for the filters in the baghouse and another is recent episodes of high pressure in the baghouse.

The mayor says Century Aluminum reported the issues to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).

"Century assures us they are working diligently to address these emission issues," Habib said in a statement. "I do not doubt this. The Mount Holly aluminum smelter has been in operation for more than 40 years. They employ hundreds of our friends and neighbors and have a tremendous impact on our local economy. In my 40 years of living here, I do not recall another issue related to emissions from the plant."

Read more: Attorney General Alan Wilson announces 26th Annual Silent Witness Ceremony

Habib also says he has asked for a town hall from Century Aluminum and the DHEC.

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An online petition was created on Oct. 1 demanding action to reduce aluminum emissions from the plant. As of Oct. 3, it has 333 signatures.

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control is now investigating complaints about a white dust produced by an aluminum plant that has caused complaints and worries for Goose Creek residents.

Alumina dust is a gritty substance people who live near the Mount Holly Century Aluminum Plant say coats vehicles, plants, mailboxes and anything else outside in areas across Goose Creek. It is produced during the smelting process but is not supposed to leave the plant, a problem DHEC is now looking into.

The Mount Holly aluminum smelter has been operating for more than 40 years. But some neighbors say it is recent emissions from the plant that they’re not getting answers about, making them worry about their health.

“It looks like someone has taken baby powder and just shook it all over the cars,” Jackie Davis Pfister, who lives in Goose Creek, says. “It’s gritty. It’s baking into our cars.”

Davis Pfister says this entire process has just been a nightmare and says she’s not the only one who is frustrated. There are multiple posts on Facebook that have garnered hundreds of comments about the same thing.

“It needs to be more addressed than it has been,” Goose Creek resident Marilyn Leegette says. “I wish DHEC would send out some kind of hazard report so people can make themselves educated about what this can do to them.”

DHEC confirmed agents have been to the facility and in the community to gather information as part of their investigation. They say they are working closely with the facility to develop an immediate corrective action plan.

Jonathan Brown, Century Aluminum’s Environmental, Health, and Safety Manager, confirmed that Century believes the emissions may be caused by an unusual failure in the plant’s baghouse. The plant is not 100% sure of the reason for the failure, but are looking at two potential possibilities. One is that a recent change of suppliers for the filters in the baghouse took place, and Century knows that on three occasions a very small portion of the bags failed. The second possibility is recent episodes of high pressure in the bag house.

Brown says Century is working diligently to address these emission issues.

On Monday, Century confirmed they had four “events.” One happened on Sept. 3, two on Sept. 16 and another on Sept. 30. Century says the issue will be fixed by Oct. 17.

But those in the community are worried about their health with some people reporting problems like rashes and difficulty breathing.

“It’s very concerning for me,” Leegette says. “I believe honestly that if there are short-term effects that are showing, there has got to be long-term effects as well.”

“If we could just know what type of air we’re breathing: Is it dangerous to us? I think we just want to know the answer,” Davis Pfister says.

DHEC says alumina dust is not considered a hazardous substance. The particle size of the dust being seen in the community is large and therefore too big to enter human lungs; however, it can still irritate skin, eyes, and the nose, and can be a respiratory irritant after prolonged exposure.

DHEC has also deployed portable air sensors in the area to measure any smaller, breathable particulate matter, called “fine particulate matter.”

DHEC says it’s important to know that the data will represent all particulate matter in the area, not just from a single source or single facility. There can be many different sources of particulate matter emissions within an area. The data from these sensors will help the agency identify any air quality trends in the community.

After an inquiry into the issue, the city of Goose Creek set up a town hall meeting with Century Aluminum and DHEC representatives for Monday at 6 p.m. at City Hall. Mayor Greg Habib will moderate this discussion, which will include questions from attendees. Experts in toxicology, air quality and public health from DHEC will join Century Aluminum leaders who will discuss the issue of excess emissions at the plant, and the plan to fix this problem.

Century says they have set up a website where residents should report their personal situation. They can also call a hotline number at 312-696-3131.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCIV) — It's alumnia dust, and it's becoming a nuisance in Goose Creek.

People who live near the Century Aluminum Plant say the particles are covering cars and raising concerns over possible health issues.

"You can actually pick up piles of it, and that's probably not a good thing," Nat Miranda said.

Goose Creek residents grapple with alumina dust from local aluminum plant (WCIV)

Read more: White dust emitted into Goose Creek from Century Aluminum plant; officials respond.

Miranda said this dust covering his car had been a problem for weeks.

"I mean, they've been a great neighbor for years now," Miranda said. "They need to take some steps to address it and make sure that we feel comfortable with them around still."

Goose Creek Mayor Greg Habib said he's been in contact with the plant. He explained the problem is with the Century's baghouse. And DHEC tells him the dust isn't a health issue.

"DHEC does not see this as a public health issue," Habib said. "There's a big difference between exposure and chronic exposure. Chronic exposure is constant exposure over a long period of time, and no one is experiencing that at this point."

Mayor Habib said he's been in contact with state leaders discussing the issue.

"The governor's office reported back to me what they learned," he said. "DHEC is in the area today and tomorrow with air quality testing measures to measure and see what exactly what the air quality issues are."

Read more: Attorney General Alan Wilson announces 26th Annual Silent Witness Ceremony.

As for a timeline to get the issue fixed, it won't take more than a few weeks.

"Now as they have gained more information over the last couple of days, they feel like they have a solution that hopefully won't take more than a week or two," he said. "I know that they are working diligently to get it fixed as fast as they can."

In the meantime, both parties said they want to see transparency.

"They told the regulators when it happened," Miranda said. "What about telling the community? I mean, obviously, it's something that we can see, so how about you say, Hey, we had a problem."

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Habib added: "People wanna see transparency. and we continue to work to get that. I think that we have to figure out as a, as a governmental agency, d e C and us and Century Aluminum as a corporate entity, um, to communicate maybe a little bit faster than we have, um, about what the issues are."

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCIV) — People who live in Goose Creek have been complaining for weeks about a white powder-like substance in the air- identified as alumina dust.

They said it’s been covering their cars and homes, and even making it hard to breathe.

Monday night, Goose Creek residents heard from health and environmental experts for the first time about the issue, and their plan to fix it.

Century Aluminum addresses alumina dust concerns in Goose Creek: Promises resolution in 10 days. Community town hall held Oct. 9, 2023. (WCIV)

They were also able to ask representatives from Century Aluminum and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) questions

Some told News 4 before the meeting started they were just looking for transparency.

“First, we’re sorry. I understand your concerns and frustrations, but we also appreciate your patience. We will fix this issue,” said Dennis Harbath, the plant manager at Century Aluminum.

Century Aluminum said the release of alumina dust in Goose Creek first happened because of accelerated bag failures. They said they’re replacing the failed bags and expect their action plan to take 10 days to solve the problem.

Read More: White dust emitted into Goose Creek from Century Aluminum plant; officials respond

But people who live in the area are still concerned.

“I’m exhausted all the time, I get headaches, you know, my eyes burn. It’s just been a total nightmare,” said Jackie Davis Pfister.

Pfister lives in Goose Creek, and people like her who have preexisting conditions like asthma are worried about long-term effects.

“Before I never really had to use my inhaler except for when I was sick or overexerted myself, that was the only time I used it, but now it’s just a regular basis, three to five times [per day],” she said.

Read More: Goose Creek residents grapple with alumina dust from local aluminum plant

DHEC said there is a certain type of aluminum oxide particles they’re keeping their eye on.

“What we were most concerned about is actually the smaller particles that you could actually breathe in and actually get into your lungs. So, for that reason we did put out some air sensors,” said Rhonda Thompson, the Bureau of Air Quality chief for DHEC.

But she said the readings from their sensors have been very low so far.

Other questions came from the crowd: Why didn’t the plant shut down when the leak first happened? And, how will aluminum oxide affect animals, and not just people?

Read More: DHEC confirms 2023 season's first flu-related death in SC

But Monday’s experts said they couldn’t answer some of those questions, leaving many frustrated.

Statistics from the DHEC air sensors and the area’s current air quality can be found on DHEC's website.

People can also go to mthollyupdates.com for more information from Century Aluminum, including how the plant is working to solve this issue.