Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on Nov. 25
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
COVID-19 hospitalizations jump 22%
At least 197,652 people have tested positive for the coronavirus in South Carolina and 4,015 have died, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control on Wednesday reported 1,243 new COVID-19 cases, down from 1,374 reported the day before.
Four coronavirus-related deaths were reported Wednesday.
As of Wednesday, 940 people were hospitalized in South Carolina with COVID-19 — a 22% jump since the beginning of last week
The percentage of positive tests was 13.8% as of Wednesday. Health officials have said the number should be closer to 5% to slow spread of the virus.
Gamecocks cancel exhibition over testing delays
The South Carolina men’s basketball team canceled its season-opening exhibition game against Coker on Wednesday, citing a delay in COVID-19 testing results at Coker.
The game was scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Colonial Life Arena, The State reported.
McMaster rolls out rapid testing in schools
Gov. Henry McMaster signed an executive order Wednesday allowing state health officials to provide public schools with rapid antigen tests supplied by the federal government.
The order has left school districts scrambling to ready a plan, The State reported.
McMaster has repeatedly said schools should return to full-time in-person instruction, but officials were caught off guard when he announced plans for the rapid testing last week.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control anticipates the initial test kits from Abbott BinaxNow will cover about 10% of districts’ students and staff, agency spokeswoman Laura Renwick told The State. The test kits should reach school districts as early as next week.
More test kits will be provided monthly and will be allocated according to usage and district needs.
Schools are currently slated to receive about 220,000 of the 1.5 million kits. They can begin testing students once the state receives a federal waiver, but they’ve also been told to get their own waivers. Ryan Brown, spokesman for the S.C. Department of Education, said without individual waivers a violation by one school could jeopardize the testing program for all schools.
Brown said when testing starts will depend on each district’s ability to “quickly coordinate and administer a rapid testing program they hadn’t known was forthcoming,” The State reported.
“Districts were blindsided more or less by it, because they hadn’t received anything besides us telling them we were working towards it,” Brown said. “Ideally, they would have had the guidance and been prepared to review it and answer questions from their school communities prior to any type of public announcement.”
USC President Bob Caslen tests positive for COVID-19
University of South Carolina President Bob Caslen has tested positive for the coronavirus, The State reported. Caslen said it was confirmed Tuesday night.
The university president said he is continuing to work at home in isolation and is in good health.
Caslen said the test “should serve as a reinforcement that everyone needs to get tested for COVID-19 on a regular basis to protect themselves, as well as loved ones,” according to The State.
Most students, faculty and staff returning to USC for the spring semester will be required to get a coronavirus test.
K-12 coronavirus cases near 4,000
Nearly 4,000 students, teachers and staff in South Carolina’s K-12 public schools have tested positive for COVID-19 since the start of the school year.
The majority of cases — 2,738 — are among students, The State reported, citing data provided by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The new data comes as school districts in Lexington and Richland counties opted to revert to online classes this week to minimize the spread of the virus and conduct contact tracing.
Lexington solicitor’s office hit with COVID-19 outbreak
At least four people in the Lexington County solicitor’s office have tested positive for the coronavirus in recent weeks, 11th Circuit Solicitor Rick Hubbard told The State.
Another five who were in close contact with the infected individuals are quarantining, and most employees in the prosecutor’s office are working from home this week.
“We’re trying to stay ahead of it,” Hubbard said. “Fortunately, nobody has been critically ill.”
Doctors call for help to slow spread
Doctors in Greenville called on residents to wear masks, socially distance themselves and frequently wash their hands over the holiday season to help slow the rising number of coronavirus cases across the state.
Taking those precautions might help stabilize the caseload until a vaccine is readily available, Dr. Wendell James of Prisma Health said Tuesday.
“There is light at the end of the tunnel,” he said in a news conference.
James said hospitals in the Upstate and Midlands are two-thirds full.
Library branches close
Three branches of the York County Library and one branch of the Richland County Library were closed Tuesday after employees were exposed to or tested positive for the coronavirus.
In York County, the Fort Mill, York and Clover branches were closed after staff members were exposed, The Rock Hill Herald reported. It wasn’t immediately clear Tuesday if any had tested positive for COVID-19.
The Eastover location in Richland County shut down Tuesday after an employee tested positive, The State reported.
The branch will be closed until Saturday at 9 a.m. and will be properly cleaned and disinfected before then.
Catawba Indian Nation leader dies from COVID-19 complications
Thomas Cornelious “Butch” Sanders, a member of the Catawba Indian Nation’s governing executive committee, died of complications from the coronavirus on Saturday, The Rock Hill Herald reported, citing an obituary published online.
Sanders was 74. A graveside service is scheduled for Wednesday at 2 p.m. at Grandview Memorial Park on Cherry Road in Rock Hill.
“Butch has served our people for many years on the Executive Committee and Housing Board. He loved being able to help others. He always had a smile on his face and was known for being a advocate for the tribe. He was very excited for the Two Kings Casino project and the growth that will bring the Nation,” tribal leaders said in a statement on social media. “This is an unimaginable loss and to say he will be missed is a huge understatement.”
The Catawba are the only federally recognized tribe in the state and are concentrated on a reservation in York County.
Coronavirus ‘hurricane’ headed to SC beaches
Doctors are warning of “Hurricane COVID” in areas frequented by air travelers over the holidays — including the coast of South Carolina.
Hilton Head International Airport is expecting a small drop in travelers, but the Transportation Security Administration is still predicting 1,800 passengers will come through the airport for departures between Nov. 24-30 — down from 2,200 in 2019. The TSA doesn’t track arrivals but said it expects similar trends.
“I do believe some of this is attributed to people wanting to get out and travel, and they want to go to the beach,” said David McMahon, TSA’s federal security director for South Carolina. “Hilton Head Airport in Hilton Head by far is doing the best. … That is a pretty rapidly growing airport that again, it’s right on the beach.”
Myrtle Beach and Charleston are also expecting a lot of travelers, The Myrtle Beach Sun News reported.
At least 9,000 people are expected to depart from Myrtle Beach from Nov. 24-30, compared to 15,000 in 2019, The Sun News reported.
Charleston International Airport, Columbia Metropolitan Airport and Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport are all expecting between a 42% and 58% drop in travelers.
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 6:51 AM.
