Beaufort Co. records over 1,100 new COVID-19 cases in 3-day span; breaks 2 virus records

Beaufort County has again broken its single-day COVID-19 case record as the omicron surge continues to ramp up.

The county on Saturday logged 543 newly confirmed infections, which is the highest total since the pandemic began, according to data released Monday by state health officials. The previous case record had been set Friday, with 290 confirmed infections.

The staggering number of new cases has continued into this week: There were 321 confirmed cases reported Sunday and 317 such infections logged Monday, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

In total, Beaufort County recorded more than 1,100 confirmed cases over a three-day span, DHEC data show.

The county’s seven-day average of newly confirmed cases, meanwhile, spiked to 259 infections per day on Monday. That’s also a record high.

DHEC does not publicly break down county-level case data by vaccination status.

The Lowcountry’s latest surge is driven by omicron, health leaders say. The super contagious variant was discovered in southern Africa late last year. It has quickly overtaken delta in the United States and now accounts for roughly 95% of new infections in the country, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Omicron has led to a record-breaking number of new COVID-19 cases in South Carolina in recent days. More than 10,700 confirmed infections were reported statewide Monday.

There is some good news. In interviews last week, local health care leaders said that anecdotally, omicron seems to produce milder disease than delta.

“From an outpatient perspective, this is the worst it’s been,” said Russell Baxley, CEO of Beaufort Memorial Hospital. “From an inpatient perspective, right now we’re doing OK.”

(Some health experts, though, fear that omicron will still overwhelm hospitals with a deluge of inpatients, simply because of the sheer number of cases that it generates.)

Countywide data

Here are the latest Beaufort County coronavirus numbers from DHEC:

New cases reported Monday: 317 confirmed, 38 probable

New cases reported Sunday: 321 confirmed, 93 probable

New cases reported Saturday: 543 confirmed, 37 probable

New deaths reported from Saturday to Monday: 0 confirmed, 0 probable

Seven-day average of new cases: 259 confirmed infections per day

Two-week case rate: 1,904 cases per 100,000 people

Vaccination rate: 56.3% of residents have “completed vaccination”

ZIP code data since Dec. 15

Bluffton ZIP code, 29910: 1,045 cases

Hilton Head Island ZIP code, 29926: 369 cases

Hilton Head Island ZIP code, 29928: 291 cases

Okatie ZIP code, 29909: 322 cases

Beaufort ZIP code, 29902: 548 cases

St. Helena Island ZIP code, 29920: 222 cases

Jasper County numbers

Jasper County logged only 43 confirmed cases and two probable infections Monday, according to DHEC. No new COVID-19 deaths were announced.

This story was originally published January 10, 2022 at 2:38 PM.

Sam Ogozalek

The Island Packet

843-900-6372

Sam Ogozalek is a reporter at The Island Packet covering COVID-19 recovery efforts. He also is a Report for America corps member. He recently graduated from Syracuse University and has written for the Tampa Bay Times, The Buffalo News and the Naples Daily News.