German company will open plant in state

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CHARLESTON --- A German company that makes parts used in everything from wind turbines to cranes will be opening its first American plant in South Carolina.

Officials say the IMO Group plant will eventually employ 190 workers and mean a $47 million investment.

Gov. Mark Sanford announced Tuesday that IMO USA Corp. will locate at an industrial park in Dorchester County northwest of Charleston.

The company makes rings used in wind turbines, construction machinery and ship building. The company's drives are used for cranes and steering gears.

Company officials said they wanted a location within three hours of a seaport, access to a major airport and a 40,000-square-foot plant.

Police say 2-year-old was shaken to death

GREENVILLE --- Authorities say a 2-year-old girl was shaken to death by a caretaker in her South Carolina home.

Greenville police told multiple media outlets that 51-year-old Judy Mae Greer is charged with homicide by child abuse.

Investigators say Greer was taking care of the girl Monday morning when she wouldn't stop crying and she shook her to get her to be quiet.

According to a police report, Greer says she knew something was wrong when the child stopped moving.

The toddler died a short time later at the hospital.

Greer lived with the child's mother, who told WYFF-TV that Greer told her a television fell on the toddler and the incident was a terrible accident.

Investigation of fire remains incomplete

CHARLESTON --- A complex federal study of a fire that killed nine South Carolina firefighters, already delayed by months, is still months from completion, authorities said Tuesday.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Md., is studying the June 18, 2007, blaze that gutted the Sofa Super Store in Charleston. Its report had been expected last year.

The study has taken longer than expected because only a few institute staffers are qualified to conduct the complex computer modeling required, agency spokesman Michael Newman said.

Toll road could offer new evacuation route

MYRTLE BEACH --- Officials are suggesting tolls could be used to build a $600 million expressway to ease tourist traffic congestion and provide another hurricane escape route in northeast South Carolina.

The Sun News of Myrtle Beach reports the road, called the Southern Evacuation Lifeline, could become the first toll road in Horry County if plans to find private investors are successful.

Civil Engineering Consulting Services Inc. has offered to find a private company or pay for a consortium to build the 28-mile road linking the area south of Myrtle Beach with U.S. Highway 501 west of Conway.

Horry County Councilman Howard Barnard says the consortium would likely charge a toll of about $3.50 per car. The road could be open in five years.

-- Edited from wire reports