SC records 1,800 new COVID-19 cases, 61 deaths over three-day span

South Carolina reported three days’ worth of COVID-19 data on Monday, with 1,874 new COVID-19 cases and 61 deaths.

The three-day string of data marked 10 consecutive days of the Palmetto State reporting fewer than 1,000 cases, the longest streak since July. Only once in the past 17 days has the state recorded 1,000 or more new cases in a day, showing the spread of the virus has slowed significantly compared to recent months.

South Carolina recorded 796 new cases and 11 deaths Saturday; 601 cases and 33 deaths on Sunday; and 477 cases and 17 deaths on Monday. At least 572 cases were listed as “probable” rather than confirmed.

That brings the state’s COVID-19 case count to more than 904,000, according to the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Over the past month, no county has seen more new cases than Greenville, with 4,042 cases.

The deaths reported Monday bring the statewide death toll to 13,896. More than 900 people have died of COVID-19 in South Carolina over the past month alone.

Over the past few weeks, the number of tests conducted have also declined, resulting in fewer positive cases, though the positivity rate of those tests have also seen a decrease.

About 41.8% of the new cases reported were people aged 30 and under.

Children 10 and younger made up 12.4% of the new cases, while 14% of the cases were diagnosed in people between the ages of 11 and 20.

At the earlier height of the pandemic between December and February, only 5.8% of positive cases were kids 10 and under.

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 to determine the variant.

There have been 438 deaths — 0.0185% of all cases — as of Nov. 5 from “breakthrough” cases, meaning the person was fully vaccinated. The majority of deaths — 60% — are people ages 71 and up. About 65% of those who died had comorbid conditions. And 0.725% of all fully vaccinated people have been infected, while nearly 0.057% of fully vaccinated people have been hospitalized.

Health officials recommend wearing a face mask and getting the coronavirus vaccine to help limit the spread of the virus.

South Carolina’s vaccination rate is 55.5%, still among the lowest in the country.

Andrew Caplan

The State

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Andrew Caplan is a watchdog journalist who hails from Florida. He comes to The State Media Company after winning several statewide awards for investigative work covering elected officials, as well as public and government entities. He holds a master’s degree from the University of South Florida.