1 COVID-19 death reported in Beaufort County Tuesday; 70 new cases reported

The COVID-19 related death an elderly Beaufort County resident was reported Tuesday by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

The individual died Saturday, the DHEC data shows. The department does not release any other specific information about the death.

Since the pandemic started, 57 people in Beaufort County have died of COVID-19, according to data from DHEC and the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office. That number includes 28 deaths recorded in July — the county’s deadliest month for the disease.

Seven deaths have been reported so far in August in the county.

South Carolina has had 2,012 confirmed deaths since the pandemic began, including 45 confirmed on Tuesday. Six of the individuals were described as middle aged, and 39 were described as elderly.

DHEC identifies anyone under the age of 18 as pediatric; between the ages of 18 and 34 as a young adult; 35 to 64 as middle aged; and 65 or older as elderly. No other identifying information, such as exact age or gender, is released by the agency.

South Carolina has recorded 101,360 cases of the novel coronavirus since the start of the pandemic.

Beaufort County’s 70 new cases Tuesday brings the total to 4,184 cases since March, according to DHEC.

The Bluffton ZIP code of 29910 continued to lead the county with 1,053 cases.

Beaufort County’s seven-day average of new daily coronavirus cases was 70 Monday.

The highest average since the pandemic started was recorded on July 31 at 98.

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

Between July 28 and August 10, the county had a “high” incident rate of 523.6 per 100,000 people, according to DHEC.

The county showed a stable two-week incidence rate rate trend, meaning cases did not significantly increase or decrease from the previous two weeks.

There have been 34,518 tests completed in Beaufort County since the pandemic started.

Twenty percent of the 4,648 COVID-19 tests completed statewide Monday were positive, DHEC says.

There have been 209 hospitalizations in Beaufort County since the pandemic started.

About 9.7 percent of county’s COVID-19 patients required hospitalization at the time of illness, DHEC reports.

Seventy-six percent of inpatient hospital beds statewide were occupied as of Tuesday. Covid-19 patient occupy 1,330 of the 8,089 beds.

Of the 1,044 ventilators statewide, 524 are in use and 207 of those are COVID-19 patients.

COVID-19 patients also are occupying 339 of the 1,098 intensive care unit beds in the state.

Beaufort County could have as many as 25,702 undiagnosed cases, DHEC officials say.

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

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

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

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 that people who die from the coronavirus might have had.

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

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