24 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Beaufort County Thursday. 507 cases total

Twenty-four new cases of coronavirus were reported in Beaufort County Thursday.

That number matches the second highest number of cases locally - reported on March 30 - since the pandemic started.

The most cases reported in a single day in the county was 29 on April 2.

Cases in the county also surpassed 500 Thursday, totaling 507 since the pandemic started, according to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control data.

As of Thursday, Bluffton led the county with 127 cases. Bluffton cases jumped by nine from Wednesday to Thursday.

South Carolina recorded 16,441 cases of the novel coronavirus and 588 deaths as of June 11.

There were no new deaths reported in Beaufort County Thursday.

Statewide, DHEC reported 13 new deaths.

The county’s lowest seven-day average for new cases was 0 on May 9.

The highest average for new cases was 15 on April 4.

The average was 13 on Thursday.

About 72 percent of hospital beds statewide were in use Thursday.

About 494 of the 7,614 beds were occupied by patients who either tested positive or are under investigation for COVID-19.

DHEC data shows 82.6 percent of the beds in Beaufort County were in use and 79.2 percent in Jasper County.

DHEC does not provide a county-by-county breakdown of how hospital beds are being used.

Coronavirus-related deaths

Here are the Beaufort County deaths recorded by the coroner’s office as of Thursday.

• An 81-year-old Beaufort man who died March 30.
• A 72-year-old Beaufort man who died March 31.
• An 86-year-old Hilton Head Island man who died April 3.
• An 89-year-old Hilton Head woman who died April 4.
• An 83-year-old Lady’s Island woman who died April 7.
• A 75-year-old Bluffton man who died April 9.
• A 71-year-old Hilton Head man who died April 12.
• A 93-year-old Bluffton man who died April 13.
• An 80-year-old Okatie man who died April 19.
• An 80-year-old Yemassee man who died April 23.
• An 84-year-old Beaufort man who died April 28.
• A 79-year-old Bluffton woman who died May 4.
• A 73-year-old Okatie woman who died May 26.
• A 59-year-old Okatie man who died May 27.

Cases by ZIP code

Beaufort County could have as many as 3,114 undiagnosed cases, DHEC officials say.

DHEC does not provide an overall, county-by-county number of cases versus the number of people who have recovered. It also does not release any identifying information or specifics concerning underlying conditions a patient might have.

Positive cases are those in which a patient has been tested and diagnosed with coronavirus. Because of a lack of access to testing, state health officials have said that for every confirmed case, there could be up to nine people who are infected but have not been tested.

DHEC’s totals can have small increases and decreases day to day as officials find discrepancies in the data.

The cases include anyone who has tested positive since the pandemic started. The data also includes those who have recovered or died.

DHEC counts deaths based on where the patient lives rather than where he or she passes away.

Coronavirus cases at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island are being reported in the 29902 ZIP code.