Overview

Bridgend was a relatively large Southern town of about 7,000 residents located in northeastern South Carolina.  Another 3000 or so live within its "economic zone" three-to-four miles outside its city limits.  The closest urban center is the City of Florence, some twenty-five miles away and the state's capital of Columbia is about 90 minutes away

by car.  The town had long enjoyed a reputation as a charming Southern village known for its hospitality and history.  Welsh Baptists first settled this area beginning in the 1740s, but it wasn't until 1823 when Bridgend was incorporated.  The town lost nearly three-quarters of its men in the Civil War, and Union Gen. William Sherman burnt a number of buildings there during his infamous "March to the Sea" in 1865.  A wildfire in 1912 and a tornado in 1964 were the only events that disrupted people's lives with any great degree during the 20th Century.   Economic downturn in the next century, however, hurt the local textile and farming industries.

Much of the downtown area still seems stuck in the past, with its historical buildings and small businesses that still offered home-grown goods and personalized service.  Two major routes - US Highway 215 and State Highway 99 - intersect in the town, although bypasses had ensured that urban encroachment and development did little to disturb the downtown area.  Bridgend grew slowly over the years, but it did grow.  The area's lone medical center and airport was located there.  It's economy was a mix of old and new:  quaint mom-and-pop county stores and big-box outlets, cotton mills and high-tech manufacturing, and old rail lines that run parallel to bustling four-lane highways.

The area around Bridgend is largely farmland and pine forest.  Some of the farms were quite large and had been in the same family for generations.  For many years tobacco was the main cash crop, but this was replaced by cotton by the turn of the 21st century.  Other common crops were corn, soybeans, produce, sunflowers, and peanuts.  Hog and turkey-growing operations could be found nearby, and small herds of beef cattle were common sights on many farms.  Peach farms, pecan orchards, and even small vineyards can also be found in the area.  Much of the land is flat to slightly rolling, but as you move west it becomes hilly and the soil much more sandy (hence the name "The Sandhills").  Pulpwood logging is prominent as well, with much of the timber going to making lumber and paper products.

Boxlight Creek runs just south of town and empties into the Great Pee Dee River some three miles away.  It was at one time a popular fishing and recreational area.  Both the creek and the river are navigable, and tend to flood in excessive rains.  Another smaller creek, Boggy Branch, winds northwest to southeast and also joins the river.  Much of the lower part is swampy, but at its head is Belmont Lake which covers roughly 4200 acres.   Much of the lake was part of the Blakeney State Park and Wildlife Preserve, although on the southeastern side the upscale homes of the affluent dot the shoreline.  Many ponds and irrigation ditches/canals can also be found in the area.

(For an idea of the flora and fauna of the Sandhills, look here.)

Then the Dead Arose

The disaster that was to consume the world in the early spring 2012 was not immediately felt in the Bridgend area.  Most watched and listened in fear at the horrors unfolding in the nation's cities.  Then the phones, TVs, and computers went silent.  For days the only communication with the outside world was through the town's tiny radio station, but it too eventually fell silent.  Some residents heeded the government's warnings and left for supposed "safe zones" at places like Pope Air Force Base or Fort Jackson.  Then came the first attempts at keeping whatever outbreak was occurring from entering the town.  Emergency plans were put into action, but they were woefully inadequate to deal with what was to come.  Only a token force of US Army soldiers, law enforcement, and scientists from the state Department of Health and Environmental Control were on hand (the local National Guard company had already been called up and sent to Fort Jackson).  Residents were forbidden to enter or leave the town.  People armed themselves and began to horde food and water.

The first reports of the dead rising were from Rodger-Poe Funeral Home on Magnolia Street, with the first attacks occurring at the Charleston Apartments across the street.  As emergency personnel and police responded, panic began to ensue in the downtown area.  Those injured or dying where sent to the hospital, and were immediately quarantined.  Containment and eradication protocols quickly went into effect:  those injured by the dead were executed and all bodies "sanitized".   Three days later, the power failed.  The town's infrastructure collapsed and along with it any resemblance of order or control.  Some people barricaded themselves in their homes or businesses, others fled to "refugee centers" or to the countryside.  The number of zombies grew steadily and seemed to be everywhere.  Now with survival their primary concern, many of the townsfolk took to looting, robbing, and even murder.  People fought the zombies and each other.  Chaos reigned as life became a never-ending nightmare.  By the end of July, Bridgend was a ghost town.  Only isolated pockets of a few survivors remained.  The largest group established a camp near the railroad bridge along the river.  Here, they gathered resources and found some measure of safety against the few walkers that them. 

Then a horde came in the middle of a warm July night...