1 new COVID-19 death reported in Beaufort County on Wednesday; 17 new cases

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

The individual died Sunday, the DHEC data shows. The department does not release any other specific information about COVID-19 deaths.

Since the pandemic started, 61 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.

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

South Carolina has had 2,248 confirmed deaths since the pandemic began, including 17 confirmed on Wednesday. One of the individuals is described as a young adult, two as middle aged and 14 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 107,274 cases of the novel coronavirus since the start of the pandemic.

Seventeen new coronavirus cases were reported in Beaufort County Wednesday, bringing the total to 4,397 since March, according to DHEC.

The Bluffton ZIP code of 29910 continued to lead the county with 1,099 cases.

Beaufort County’s seven-day average of new daily coronavirus cases was 29 as of Wednesday.

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 Aug. 5 and Tuesday, the county had a high incidence rate of 346.1 per 100,000 people, according to DHEC.

DHEC reports the county has seen a decreasing two-week incident rate compared to the previous two-week period.

Of the 38,071 tests completed in the county since the pandemic started, 15% have been positive.

Sixteen percent of the 4,195 COVID-19 tests completed statewide Tuesday were positive, DHEC says.

There have been 227 hospitalizations in Beaufort County since the pandemic started.

About 9% of the county’s COVID-19 patients required hospitalization at the time of illness, DHEC reports.

Sixty-six percent or 162 Beaufort County hospital beds were occupied Wednesday.

About 79% of inpatient hospital beds statewide were occupied as of Wednesday. COVID-19 patients accounted for 1,168 of the 8,134 occupied beds.

Of the 1,578 ventilators statewide, 531 are in use, and 164 of those are COVID-19 patients.

COVID-19 patients also are occupying 293 of the 1,119 intensive care unit beds in the state.

Beaufort County could have as many as 26,304 undiagnosed cases, DHEC officials say.

Positive cases are those in which a patient has been tested for and been 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.