Beaufort Co. is averaging 118 new COVID-19 cases per day, shattering record. What to know
Beaufort County on Tuesday logged a record-breaking average of new coronavirus cases as the super-contagious delta variant continues to spread across the South.
The county’s seven-day average of new cases, as of Tuesday, was 118 confirmed infections per day, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The Tuesday average shattered the county’s previous record of 113 cases per day, which was set on Jan. 14, DHEC data show.
The previous record came at the peak of South Carolina’s winter surge.
The delta variant, which is roughly twice as transmissible as the original coronavirus strain, has driven the latest spike in COVID-19 cases, experts say.
Coronavirus deaths have remained relatively low in recent weeks, with six fatalities recorded in Beaufort County since the beginning of June, but COVID-19 deaths typically lag a few weeks behind case surges.
The county’s recent spike in disease spread, which began the week of July 12, could still lead to a future uptick in fatalities.
The high vaccination rate among local seniors, though, is one bright spot in what is otherwise a deteriorating situation.
Roughly 87% of Beaufort County residents 65 or older have received at least one dose of a vaccine, according to DHEC and U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Why is that inoculation rate so important?
About 75% of the county’s COVID-19 deaths have been recorded among people 71 or older since the pandemic began, DHEC data show. And the vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson remain effective against the delta variant, experts say.
Fewer susceptible elderly residents could blunt the worst effects of delta.
The weeks ahead, though, remain unpredictable. Experts are casting a wary eye toward the return of in-person K-12 learning.
The Beaufort County School District’s first day of classes is Aug. 16, the S.C. Legislature has blocked public schools from enforcing mask mandates, and only 43.6% of Beaufort County’s estimated population has been fully vaccinated, according to DHEC.
“Most pediatricians are predicting that we’re going to have a surge in the two to four weeks after school starts, with people coming in to get tested,” said Dr. Faith Polkey, chief clinical officer at Beaufort Jasper Hampton Comprehensive Health Services, in a recent interview. “That’s what makes sense. If you have a significant portion of people unvaccinated ... the virus is going to go where it can in the susceptible population.”
Kids younger than 12 are still not eligible for coronavirus vaccines.
Children generally fare better with COVID-19 than older adults, but delta has been linked to several spikes in pediatric coronavirus infections around the United States, and various children’s hospitals have reported a deluge of adolescents testing positive for COVID-19.
Because delta is so transmissible, “it’s able to get over the pediatric hump and is able to cause more and more infections in children,” said Dr. Frank Esper, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic Children’s hospital in Ohio.
“While they are much more resilient and are not getting severely sick, they’re going to bring that virus home to other members of the family who might be more at risk,” Esper said of kids.
Here’s the latest DHEC coronavirus data for Beaufort County:
New cases reported Tuesday: 101 confirmed, 8 probable
New cases reported Monday: 97 confirmed, 18 probable
New cases reported Sunday: 155 confirmed, 76 probable
New cases reported Saturday: 127 confirmed, 23 probable
New deaths reported from Saturday to Tuesday: 1 probable
Seven-day average of new cases: 118 confirmed infections per day
Two-week incidence rate: 869.2 cases per 100,000 people
