Overview
DPH Fire and Life Safety is a section within the Bureau of Nursing Homes & Medical Services in Healthcare Quality. Fire and Life Safety inspectors are certified as Fire Marshals by the South Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal, International Codes Council, and the National Fire Protection Agency.
The Section conducts routine fire and life safety surveys of over 1,200 DPH-licensed health facilities statewide to ensure continued compliance with applicable codes, standards and regulations. In particular, the Fire and Life Safety Section ensures these health facilities operate in a safe manner by enforcing applicable state licensing regulations, federal CMS standards, SC Fire Codes and NFPA standards.
The authority to do this comes from the South Carolina Legislature. Some facilities such as doctors' offices and clinics are not licensed by DPH and thus are not inspected by DPH's Fire & Life Safety Section.
Fire & Life Safety Contacts
| Counties | Contact |
|---|---|
| Statewide | Todd McAlhany, Director — mcalhadt@dph.sc.gov — (803) 465-1273 |
| Berkeley, Clarendon, Charleston, Georgetown, Horry | David Alan Moody — moodyda@dph.sc.gov — (803) 465-7318 |
| Cherokee, Chester, Fairfield, Greenville, Laurens, Newberry, Spartanburg, Union | Mike Winnington — winninmj@dph.sc.gov — (803) 609-0290 |
| Abbeville, Anderson, Edgefield, Greenwood, McCormick, Oconee, Pickens, Richland, Saluda | Derrick Jones — jonesdl@dph.sc.gov — (803) 465-4797 |
| Aiken, Allendale, Barnwell, Bamberg, Beaufort, Colleton, Dorchester, Orangeburg, Hampton, Jasper, Lexington, Calhoun | Jordan Dempsey — dempsejm@dph.sc.gov — (803) 237-4333 |
| Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Kershaw, Lancaster, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Sumter, Williamsburg, York | Todd McAlhany, Director — mcalhadt@dph.sc.gov — (803) 465-1273 |
Downloads & Links
- Laundry Fire Memo 2023 (pdf)
- Reporting Loss of Utilities/Services Memo 2023 (pdf)
- Guidelines for Fire & Life Safety Requirements (pdf)
- Fire Response Training (pdf)
- Fire & Life Safety Fire Extinguisher Demonstration
- Maintenance Directors Summit Recording - Dec. 7, 2023
Note: The source page links to these downloadable resources (memos, guidelines, training materials) by title without providing direct file URLs; providers should access them via the SC DPH website's Fire & Life Safety page directly.
Tags
Facilities, fire & life safety, Health Regulation & Licensing
Note on scope: This source document is a single overview/contact page as published by SC DPH and does not itself contain the full text of the underlying fire codes, NFPA standards, or CMS regulations it references. It does not cite specific numbered regulations (e.g., a particular Regulation 61-XX) within the page content itself — only general references to "applicable state licensing regulations, federal CMS standards, SC Fire Codes and NFPA standards." No content has been omitted from this page; the full text as provided has been reproduced above.
General information, not legal advice. Requirements change; confirm against the official source before you act, or ask us how this applies to your organization.