Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on Sept. 13
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases top 129,000
At least 129,484 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Carolina, and 2,915 have died, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control on Sunday reported 515 new cases of the virus, down from 827 the day before.
Twenty-four deaths were also reported Sunday.
The DHEC on Sunday reported a positive test rate of 9.4%, down from 13.7% the day before. Health officials have said that number should be 5% or lower.
Free school meals to continue in Beaufort County
Children in Beaufort County will continue getting free school meals.
The Beaufort County School District has been delivering the meals since schools closed at the start of the pandemic in March. It will continue after federal funding was extended.
The meals will go to children 18 years old and younger regardless of whether they’re enrolled in a district school or if they have a meal card.
Delivery routes can be found on www.beaufortschools.net by clicking “Community” and “COVID-19 Updates.” Parents can also pick up meals Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9-11 a.m. at Battery Creek High School, Beaufort High School, Hilton Head Island High School and Bluffton Middle School.
Bus driver tests positive
A COMET bus driver tested positive for the coronavirus Saturday and is in quarantine, according to the Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority.
The driver had multiple routes in Columbia last week before the test came back, officials say —including routes 77 and 6 Monday and Soda Cap 1 route Tuesday. The driver last worked the 1302 Tripper USC route for the University of South Carolina on Wednesday.
The risk that passengers were exposed is “minimal” because of the safety protocols in place, COMET Executive Director and CEO John Andoh said, according to The State.
But anyone who took the routes is encouraged to be tested for COVID-19.
Judge may expand SC voter access
A federal judge is considering expanding voter access in the Nov. 3 election after a hearing on how the pandemic may affect voting.
U.S. District Judge Michelle Childs on Friday heard from lawyers representing interests from the Democratic Party and lawyers representing the S.C. State Election Commission, the S.C. Republican Party, State Senate President Harvey Peeler, R-Cherokee, and State House Speaker Jay Lucas, R-Darlington, The State reported Sunday.
Bruce Spiva, the Democratic Party lawyer, told Childs that COVID-19 concerns should allow any South Carolina voter to vote absentee. The S.C. House of Representatives will meet Tuesday to consider passing a bill that would do so. The state Senate has already passed a similar bill.
Childs said she would wait to hear what the House does before issuing any orders.
“I have lots of work to do,” she said at the end of the hearing in a courtroom at the federal courthouse in downtown Columbia. “I understand the urgency of the case.”
Beaufort County residents could lose power
Dominion Energy’s statewide moratorium on power disconnections ends Monday.
As of late July, there were roughly 54,000 Dominion Energy customers in the county, The Island Packet reported Sunday.
Gov. Henry McMaster in March urged utility companies in South Carolina to temporarily halt power disconnections for nonpayment due to the coronavirus pandemic. But the requirement ended in May. The Palmetto Electric Cooperative resumed disconnections earlier this year.
Paul Fischer, a spokesperson for Dominion Energy, said in a statement that the company has expanded its payment options, giving residents more flexibility to pay off their bills.
“It had to happen eventually,” Chrystie Turner, vice president of community impact at the United Way of the Lowcountry, told The Island Packet. “Unfortunately, the shoe dropped right with the opening of the school year.”
McMaster criticizes coronavirus-related shutdowns
The governor on Friday night criticized Democratic governors in states that shuttered businesses and restricted “rights” in an effort to control the spread of COVID-19.
His comments were made during the South Carolina Republican Party’s Silver Elephant Dinner. The event required temperature checks, masks and social distancing. But guests were largely seen without masks and beyond their tables, The State reported Friday night.
McMaster said governors shut down auto plants in some states.
“In some places, they even shut down churches,” he said.
South Carolina is still dealing with its COVID-19 outbreak as students have returned to college campuses and K-12 schools have reopening for in-person instruction.
This story was originally published September 13, 2020 at 10:43 AM.
