Officials nearing cleanup of tires on St. Helena

BEAUFORT, S.C. (AP) — Officials hope to complete the cleanup of about 80 tons of abandoned tires on St. Helena Island this week.

The Beaufort Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/wyFKNY) the tires had been dumped on the property over a 50-year period.

The tires were spotted during a flyover of the area by a Beaufort County mosquito control helicopter in December. Abandoned tires make the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes.

The property is owned by 82-year-old Shirley Cole. Valerie Cole-Nixon says the tires accumulated when her late father and uncle ran a full-service gas station from the 1950s through the late 1990s.

The Cole family has paid a private contractor to remove the tires from the marsh.

Beaufort County is getting money from a state fund to move the tires to a recycling center.

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Information from: The Beaufort Gazette, http://www.beaufortgazette.com