This Seneca plant makes transfer cases for four-wheel drive and all-wheel drive vehicles.

South Carolina suffered blows from at least seven and upwards of 10 tornadoes earlier Monday morning (Apr. 13,2020) with local news outlets reporting nine confirmed deaths, hundreds of properties damaged, and thousands left without power. American Automotive industry components and parts supplier Borg Warner was hit especially hard, their Seneca, SC plant suffering a direct hit.

Here are a handful of photos on social media showing the extent of the damage.

BorgWarner Plant Hit by a Tornado in Seneca, SC (4-13-20) from r/CatastrophicFailure

According to the Detroit Free Press and Borg Warner in a statement to the press, they confirmed at least one person died at the plant, a 77-year-old security guard contracted by Borg Warner. The guard suffered blunt force trauma as the guard shake near the entrance collapsed due to the tornado.

Borg Warner made news the week before for acquiring Delphi Technologies, a competitor that makes combustion systems, electronics, and software controls for OEM car manufacturers.

This latest blow from mother nature at their Seneca plant is a small setback that Borg Warner should be able to weather. In the Detroit Free Press’s coverage, the VP of Global Vehicle forecasting Solutions highlighted a small silver lining if you can even call it that.

With several dealerships, automotive factories, and parts suppliers shuttered for the time being, since Borg Warner was following South Carolina protocols to close non-essential businesses, this plant was not in full operation and only four other employees were there at the time. It could’ve been a lot worse.

This Seneca plant is only one of 52 locations that this 92 year-old company has. According to their company locations information, Borg Warner has 18 locations in the United States alone.

Although most gear heads know Borg Warner for making turbos, the company has branched out from not only combustion applications but hybrid and electric technologies as well. But it’s true, most of their claims to fame is thanks to the racing world supplying turbos for IndyCar series racecars and at least one F1 team, Renault F1.

Our thoughts this blog post go out to that Borg Warner Security guard and we’re cheering for this Seneca, SC community to get back on their feet as soon as possible.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here