Coronavirus cases top 16,000 in SC. Record number of cases reported Thursday
South Carolina reported 687 new cases of the coronavirus Thursday as the infectious disease continues to pound the state following Gov. Henry McMaster’s decision to ease restrictions in early May.
That’s the highest number of daily cases reported to date and it underscores the need to practice social distancing and wear masks, said Joan Duwve, director of the Department of Health and Environmental Control’s health division.
The rate of positive cases has jumped above 12% in recent days, a high number that indicates COVID 19 is spreading across South Carolina, she told the agency board Thursday morning. The most recent number is 14.3 percent positive out of 4,791 people tested Wednesday, the agency reported later Thursday.
“That percent positive rate continues to increase as well, which tells us that we are finding more real cases, not cases that were asymptomatic and not otherwise diagnosed,’’ she said.
All told, the state has had 16,441 cases as of Thursday. About 40 percent of the state’s cases have been diagnosed during the past three weeks, she said.
The agency announced 13 additional deaths Thursday, bringing the total number of dead to 588, many of them older than 65. Duwve said some people are dying from the disease within three to four weeks of being infected.
Duwve said outbreaks of the virus are being found in “multiple counties.’’
Richland County leads the state in total Covid-19 related deaths with 70 since the disease was first documented in South Carolina in early March. More than 2,000 people have tested positive for the disease in Richland County; 69 more cases were reported Thursday.
Lexington County had 52 new cases announced Thursday, bringing the county’s total number of cases to 992, DHEC reported. All told, 38 people have died in Lexington County from the coronavirus, incuding one announced Thursday.
Duwve said clusters of the disease are being found. In some cases, multiple family members are being infected with COVID 19, as are an array of workers and people socializing together, she said.
“We’re seeing them in family units, we are seeing them related to medical practices, we’re seeing them related to construction sites and meat processing plants, and community gatherings on the beach and places of worship,’’ she said. “We are seeing outbreaks that are related to anytime people get together in close proximity, don’t social distance and don’t wear a mask.’’
She noted that McMaster does not plan to shut down the state again, so South Carolina needs to take other steps to address COVID 19.
“Steps would include social distancing and wearing a mask,’’ she said, noting “that we all have work to do.’’
Many people are wearing masks, but many are not, she said. Duwve said an agency employee reported visiting two different health care facilities and seeing workers there with masks hanging around their necks, rather than covering their mouths and noses to contain the disease.
They were “not protecting themselves, not protecting their patients,’’ Duwve said.
South Carolina, like many southern states, has dropped most restrictions that were implemented in the spring to stop the spread of COVID 19. People have crowded beaches, walkways and stores, many of them not wearing masks or keeping their distance. Protests also have had people in proximity to each other.
McMaster says it’s up to the people to decide if they want to wear masks and social distance. The governor said earlier this week that he wasn’t interested in instituting “mandates from the government.’’
This story was originally published June 11, 2020 at 11:30 AM.
