Briefly

Coast Guard saves 3 people and dog

The Coast Guard rescued three people and a dog at early Saturday after their 22-foot boat ran aground on a sandbar off Edisto Beach.

The boaters phoned the Coast Guard at about 4:15 a.m., saying they had grounded on a sandbar and were taking on water.

The Coast Guard Air Facility Charleston dispatched a helicopter, and pulled Samuel Blevins, Angela Jackson, Jessica Watts, and a dog, Diesel, to safety.

James Redmand stayed aboard the vessel while another boater in the area helped pull it back to shore. Blevins, Jackson, Watts and Diesel were rescued in good condition taken to a local airport, the Coast Guard said.

Bike rider dies after truck hits him

A 41-year-old man from Berkeley County died late Friday night after a pickup truck struck him while he was riding his bicycle, authorities said.

Alvin White was pronounced dead at the scene, Berkeley County Deputy Coroner Bill Salisbury said. Salisbury said White was riding a bicycle on Forty-One Road when he was struck by a Dodge Ram pickup truck. White died of a head injury.

Salisbury said he ruled the cause of death as accidental. White lived in the area. The state Highway Patrol also is investigating the death.

Inmate walks away from car wash job

An inmate from the minimum-security Coastal Pre-Release Center in Charleston walked away from his work assignment Saturday at Cactus Car Wash in West Ashley.

Joseph Terry Nelson, 38, was confirmed missing from the car wash on Ashley River Road about 6:30 p.m., the S.C. Department of Corrections said. A search was under way late Saturday.

Nelson was convicted of shoplifting and was serving a five-year sentence, a Corrections Department press release said. It said he was projected to be released in January.

Nelson is black, 5 feet 7 inches tall and about 205 pounds. To provide information on his whereabouts, call the Corrections Department Fugitive Apprehension Unit at 1-877-349-2130 or the State Law Enforcement Division at 1-803-737-9000.

2 Upstate teens charged by police

North Charleston police have arrested two teenagers and accused them of breaking into automobiles at a hotel on North Arco Lane.

Brandon A. Gore, 18, of Pickens, and Kirk L. Dockery, 17, of Greenville, have been charged with breaking and entering an automobile, said Spencer Pryor, police public information officer.

Police were called about 5 a.m. Saturday to the Extended Stay Hotel for several auto break-ins in the parking lot. Officers saw a man jumping the fence and caught him after a short foot chase, Pryor said. He said a second suspect was found a few minutes later and was arrested without incident.

Robbery suspect turns himself in

North Charleston police have arrested a suspect in a Friday afternoon bank robbery at First Federal on Rivers Avenue.

Patrick James, 29, is charged with entering a bank with intent to steal, said Spencer Pryor, police public information officer. He said James surrendered to Mecklenburg County police in Charlotte on Saturday. Extradition proceedings are expected.

The bank was robbed about 1 p.m. by a man who handed a note to the teller. The note indicated that he was armed and demanded money.

Surveillance cameras shot clear photos of the robber at the counter and then walking away with a wad of cash.