Dozens died of COVID-19 over weekend, SC health officials say
Over the weekend, South Carolina saw more than 3,000 new COVID-19 cases reported each day, according to state health officials.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 3,591 confirmed and 1,011 probable new cases of coronavirus within the state Saturday and 3,963 confirmed and 1,048 probable cases Sunday. On Monday, the health agency reported 3,124 new confirmed cases and 416 probable cases.
State health officials also reported 25 new deaths attributable to COVID-19 Saturday and five more that were likely due to the virus. On Sunday, they reported 14 deaths due to the coronavirus and 13 probably attributable to the virus. On Monday, they reported 45 new deaths, 36 of which were confirmed, bringing the statewide death toll due to COVID-19 up to 9,064.
At least 77 of the deaths have been from “breakthrough cases,” or from people who were fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. In all, DHEC has documented 406 breakthrough cases resulting in death or a positive COVID-19 test.
Of the COVID-19 tests done, 12.7% came back positive, according to data collected from Saturday to Sunday. Percent positive refers to the number of positive COVID-19 tests in relation to all COVID-19 tests conducted.
The highly contagious delta variant is likely responsible for the majority of new COVID-19 cases in South Carolina, according to state health officials. The exact number of delta cases is unknown because only a fraction of confirmed cases undergo genome sequencing, the process used to determine the variant.
More than 565,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported in South Carolina since the start of the pandemic.
Health officials recommend wearing a face mask and getting the coronavirus vaccine to help limit the spread of the virus. South Carolina currently has a 46% vaccination rate, one of the lowest in the country.
