South Carolina: Loud boom in Anderson area

May 31, 2023

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A loud boom was reported Wednesday in parts of South Carolina.

WYFF News 4 started getting emails and social media messages at about 10:05 a.m.

The first email said, "A loud boom was heard by a lot of folks around Anderson, Belton, Honea Path and Iva, around 0950 AM. Sounded a lot like a sonic boom from a jet breaking the sound barrier."

A second email said, "Was there a sonic boom about 15 minutes ago? People all over heard and felt it. I’m in Starr and it rattled my doors and windows."

More news (story will continue after links.)

One viewer's email said she saw military jets flying over her home in Mauldin from Donaldson Center.

The Donaldson Center Fire Department confirmed it was jets.

The Anderson County Sheriff's Office said F-16s were flying out of the Donaldson Center, and one of the aircraft broke the sound barrier and created the 'boom' noise that was heard in the area.

Alex Curry, Communications Manager at Greenville Lockheed Martin, said the booms occurred during pre-delivery testing of the F-16s, which does include flying supersonic.

Curry said in most circumstances, the booms can be mitigated and will never hit the ground.

However, in some cases, weather conditions contribute to making it impossible to control the booms entirely, and that is what happened Wednesday.

The loud booms are nothing new to the area.

Click here to read our story from February.