PICKENS COUNTY — The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) announced on Monday 127 new cases of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 in S.C., and five additional deaths. Pickens County had three additional cases, DHEC said.
This brings the total number of people confirmed to have COVID-19 in South Carolina to 3,439, and those who have died to 87, the agency said.
All five additional deaths occurred in elderly individuals with underlying health conditions and were residents of Aiken (1), Beaufort (1), Greenville (2), and Kershaw (1) counties.
The number of new cases by county are listed below:
Aiken (1), Anderson (3), Berkeley (7), Charleston (12), Chester (1), Chesterfield (1), Clarendon (1), Colleton (1), Darlington (4), Dorchester (2), Fairfield (2), Florence (7), Greenville (7), Greenwood (1), Hampton (2), Horry (13), Jasper (1), Kershaw (2), Lancaster (1), Lee (2), Marlboro (1), Pickens (3), Richland (30), Saluda (1), Spartanburg (14), Sumter (4), Union (1), York (2).
Officialsa said Lexington County lost six cases and Marion County lost one case from their total counts as the individuals were determined during case investigations to be residents of other counties and states.
On March 6 the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in South Carolina. The projections currently indicate that South Carolina may see almost 2,000 new cases per week by early May. The total number of cases is estimated to grow to 8,677 confirmed cases on May 2, according to DHEC.
Testing in South Carolina
As of April 12, DHEC’s Public Health Laboratory has conducted 10,554 tests for COVID-19. Of these tests, 1,242 positive and 9,312 were negative. A total of 32,764 total tests by both DHEC’s Public Health Laboratory and private labs have been conducted in the state. DHEC’s Public Health Laboratory is operating extended hours and is testing specimens seven days a week. The Public Health Laboratory’s current timeframe for providing results to health care providers is 24-48 hours.
Hospital Bed Capacity
As of this morning, 5,748 hospital beds are available and 5,908 are utilized, which is a 50.7% statewide hospital bed utilization rate.
How South Carolinians Can Protect Themselves
South Carolinians are encouraged to stay home and minimize contact with people outside their households to prevent the spread of the disease. Other steps the public should take include:
• Monitoring for symptoms
• Practicing social distancing
• Avoiding touching frequently touched items
• Regularly washing your hands
Anyone with concerns about their health should reach out to their healthcare provider or use the telehealth services provided by several health care systems.
For telehealth options and the latest information about DHEC’s COVID-19 response efforts, please visit scdhec.gov/COVID-19. Visit scdmh.net for stress, anxiety and mental health resources from the S.C. Department of Mental Health.
