‘I pray we survive,’ Midlands sheriff says after he and wife test positive for COVID-19
A Midlands sheriff said Monday that he has tested positive for COVID-19.
Newberry County Sheriff Lee Foster posted on Facebook that he and his wife, Carol, are confirmed to have the coronavirus.
“I tested positive (Sunday). Carol tested positive (Monday),” Foster said in the post.
The sheriff, who has held the office since first being elected in 1988, said he and his wife are suffering from mild symptoms of COVID-19.
In spite of that, Foster said “I pray we survive.”
He gave a brief description of his condition, saying in addition to a “low grade” fever, the coronavirus is making Foster “feel like that piece of meat Rocky Balboa beat in the freezer.”
Foster was not immediately confirmed to have COVID-19, as the sheriff said he got a negative result from a test on Dec. 29. In spite of that negative screening, Foster said he began feeling worse on New Year’s Eve.
Still, he was surprised to learn that he had what he called “a mystical virus,” because of the previous negative test and precautions Foster said he was taking. That included “walking around smelling like hand sanitizer and wearing a pretty good mask.”
In spite of those safety measures, Foster said he was exposed to the virus because of his job as sheriff, where he is often conducting business in crowds.
“It was bound to happen because of my lifestyle,” Foster said.
Foster is described as “active in the community,” and “leads by example with a hands on approach,” in his bio on the Newberry County website.
Prior to testing positive, Foster said he was “patiently awaiting” to get the vaccine, noting other law enforcement officers have already received an inoculation.
“Others in my profession had gotten it but we have not been allowed,” Foster said. “I guess I am getting the natural vaccination.”
The sheriff is continuing to work from home. Foster said he has conducted business with people who have come to his house, “albeit through the storm door.”
Foster is not the only Midlands sheriff to test positive for COVID-19. On Dec. 16, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott confirmed he had the coronavirus.
Like Foster, the first test Lott took had a negative result, but further screening showed the Richland County sheriff had COVID-19. Following a period of self-quarantining, Lott was cleared to return to work on Dec. 23.
Some other well-known people with South Carolina connections who have tested positive for the coronavirus include Gov. Henry McMaster and his wife, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, USC President Bob Caslen, Gamecock men’s basketball coach Frank Martin, Masters champion and Irmo native Dustin Johnson, former U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham and Nancy Mace, the candidate who defeated Cunningham for the state’s 1st District congressional seat, among others.
Through Monday, 299,685 cases of COVID-19 and 5,056 coronavirus-related deaths have been confirmed in South Carolina, according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control. In Newberry County, there have been 2,610 positive tests and 65 deaths, data shows.
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