Sean Deese, owner of the Sunset Boulevard boat dealership near the town of Lexington, Mountain Top Marine, would usually be busy with sales just before Memorial Day weekend, but he won’t be selling a single boat this time.

On April 29, 2025, Deese’s security camera captured a road work vehicle completing an S.C. Department of Transportation project on Sunset Boulevard right in front of his business. The following weekend, Deese said he noticed most of his inventory was covered in road soot, caked into cushions and carpeting, coating interior speakers and other hardware.

He said it’s not something you can just clean with a rag, adding that there are some parts of the boats that could be cleaned with relative ease; however, it's where roadwork soot allegedly hit leather, carpet or technology that worries him most and makes the boats unsellable.

That’s over $3 million worth of inventory this Lexington County family-owned business can no longer sell, Deese told the Chronicle.

He’s laid off six employees this month because there is no longer any work for them to do, even on Memorial Day weekend.

“I’m stuck in the middle,” he said. “I don’t have anything to sell.”

Now, Deese said he’s constantly on the phone. He said he’s been in touch with SCDOT contractors’ and subcontractors’ insurance companies, and has so far only reached dead ends.

Subcontractor Griffin Contracting told WIS: “Griffin Contracting is aware of the allegations made by Mountain Top Marine. This matter has been investigated internally and turned over to our insurance company. Our only comment on the matter is that our scope and equipment could not produce the damage being alleged. We are confident the facts will confirm our position.”

Deese told the Chronicle that there are a few local and state representatives who are angry for him and trying to help, including Lexington Town Councilman Gavin Smith and Rep. Chris Wooten, R-Lexington.

Here’s some of what Smith wrote to S.C. Secretary of Transportation Justin P. Powell: “On April 29th, 2025, a contractor performing road maintenance on Highway 378 applied a tar-like compound—believed to be a road surface binder—to the roadway near Mountaintop Marine’s facility. Unfortunately, this substance also coated 68 of the company’s boats in inventory. These are high-value items central to the business’s operations, and the damage incurred is significant enough that they may now be unsellable. The contractor’s insurer has not yet accepted responsibility, and, based on existing SCDOT procedures, this matter could take months to fully resolve. In the meantime, Mountaintop Marine is shouldering an enormous financial burden for an event entirely beyond its control. It is unacceptable that any South Carolina business—especially a family-owned operation serving our community and citizens—should face potential collapse while waiting for bureaucracy to catch up.”

SCDOT provided the following comment to the Chronicle: "SCDOT and Secretary Powell are aware of the concerns raised and continue to work closely with both the business owner and the contractor to resolve the matter quickly and appropriately through our normal procedures."

This story has been updated with SCDOT's comment provided to the Chronicle on May 23.