1 new COVID-19 death, 13 additional cases confirmed in Beaufort County Monday
State health officials reported one additional coronavirus-related death and 13 new COVID-19 cases in Beaufort County on Monday.
The deceased was an elderly person who died Aug. 28, becoming the county’s 70th confirmed coronavirus-related fatality, according to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control figures. DHEC data show 4,956 confirmed cases of the virus in Beaufort County since the pandemic began in March.
The county’s rolling seven-day average of newly reported cases climbed slightly this week to 31 cases per day. That figure declined sharply during the month of August.
Last week in Bluffton, heading into the Labor Day weekend, about 1,600 people signed a petition asking the town to re-open playgrounds, which are closed during the pandemic.
A group of residents has planned protests Tuesday in Old Town Bluffton in opposition to the town’s mask requirement, according to a Facebook event. The town’s mask rule is similar to those in place on Hilton Head Island and across Beaufort County.
Local numbers
- Number of viral and antibody tests conducted: 234
- Percent of positive viral tests for last week: 15.5%
- Seven-day average of new cases in Beaufort County: 31
- Two-week incidence rate: 214.4 cases per 100,000 people, “moderately high”
An incidence rate measures how quickly a disease is spreading through a given population.
Dr. Scott Curry, an infectious disease specialist at the Medical University of South Carolina, said counties should aim to have a two-week incidence rate of less than 50 new cases per 100,000 people.
The World Health Organization, meanwhile, has suggested that governments reopen only after the percentage of positive tests is below 5% for at least two weeks.
Statewide numbers
- Percent of positive non-antibody tests: 11.2%
- New cases announced Monday: 590
- Total cases: 123,552
- New deaths announced Monday: 19
- Total deaths: 2,767
Experts fear a possible surge of new infections this fall as schools resume in-person classes. At the University of South Carolina, over 1,000 students have already been diagnosed with COVID-19.
In Beaufort County, all 26 members of the USC Beaufort women’s soccer team had to quarantine after two members tested positive last month.
Cases by ZIP code
Bluffton’s ZIP code of 29910 continues to lead the county with 1,216 cases this year. Beaufort’s 29902 ZIP code, meanwhile, has recorded 979 cases since March, the second-highest figure in the county.
Coronavirus infections at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island are being reported in the 29902 ZIP code.
More information on Beaufort County ZIP code data can be found at the following link. Click on it, then click on “Go to Cases,” then click on Beaufort County on the S.C. map: bit.ly/BeaufortCountyZIP
What are DHEC’s recommendations?
State health officials say residents should continue to practice social distancing and should wear a mask in public.
“Recently, our (case) numbers have been slowly trending downward,” said Bell, DHEC’s top epidemiologist, in late August. “For that to continue, we cannot let up.”
DHEC has cautioned against a possible rise in cases following the holiday weekend.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREHow South Carolina’s coronavirus data is compiled
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control’s total COVID-19 case count includes anyone who has tested positive since the pandemic began. The data also include those who have recovered or died.
The state agency does not provide an overall, county-by-county number of cases versus the number of people who have recovered.
DHEC counts deaths based on where a patient lives rather than where they died.
This story was originally published September 7, 2020 at 2:15 PM.
