Florence County honored for low workers-comp modifier; fire department unveils tablet accountability system

Florence County Council accepted two safety awards and heard a demonstration of a new firefighter accountability system during its public meeting.

Robert Benfield of the South Carolina Association of Counties told the council Florence County has the lowest experience modifier among the association's 42-member trust and said, "Your modifier currently is 1.63," which he said produced a discount that "saved the taxpayers of Florence County over $500,000 last year." He described the awards as recognition of a countywide safety culture that reduced injuries and budget pressure.

The county's fire chief described the accountability system the departments began implementing in 2024. "It's a tablet that connects to our radios that, we got issued to us and it, it tracks us on scenes for structure fires or any kind of larger incidents," the chief said, explaining the tablets show personnel locations and enable scene messaging. The chief credited interdepartmental cooperation — including Lake City, South Lynch's and the City of Florence — and council support for the rollout.

Council members praised the county's team approach to risk management and asked staff to continue support for training and equipment. The presentation concluded with recipients and county staff receiving resolutions and photographs at the dais.