Beaufort County sees its largest daily coronavirus case increase yet
Thirty-three new cases of coronavirus were reported in Beaufort County Friday, the largest one-day increase on record locally.
The previous county high was 29 cases on April 2.
Beaufort County has 540 reported cases of coronavirus since the pandemic started, according to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control data.
Bluffton has the largest number of cases in the county at 135, with eight new cases recorded Friday.
South Carolina recorded 770 new cases of the novel coronavirus Friday, a new record for the state set one day after a record high of 687 cases.
There were also five new deaths statewide Friday.
In total, the state has 17,170 reported cases and 593 deaths as of that same date. There were no new deaths reported in Beaufort County.
About 73 percent of hospital beds statewide were in use Friday. About 512 of the 7,614 beds were occupied by patients who either tested positive or are under investigation for COVID-19.
DHEC data shows 75.7 percent of the hospital 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 Friday.
- 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 3,317 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.