South Carolina coronavirus cases rise to 10; Beaufort County protection efforts increase

Savannah postponed its St. Patrick’s Day festivities, and Beaufort County’s establishments ramped up protections Wednesday against coronavirus, with University of South Carolina-Beaufort canceling a week of classes and Beaufort Memorial Hospital beginning more stringent new-patient procedures.

The changes came as coronavirus cases in the state increased from nine to 10, according to S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Eight of the 10 cases have tested positive for coronavrius but are waiting for confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The latest case, announced Wednesday, is a Lancaster County woman who has been hospitalized and isolated. She had no known travel outside of the state or contact with another case. Seven cases are in Kershaw County; Charleston and Spartanburg counties have one each.

DHEC has tested 51 individuals for COVID-19, which includes the eight presumptive positive cases and two confirmed cases. COVID-19 is a specific disease from the coronavirus family, which also causes the common cold and more severe illnesses such as SARS and MERS.

Hilton Head Island Mayor John McCann said Wednesday afternoon that the island’s parade and festival Sunday are still planned, but the city of Savannah has postponed its St. Patrick’s Day festival and parade. Officials have not said whether the events will be rescheduled.

A patient in the St. Joseph’s/Candler Healthcare System has been isolated after being tested for COVID-19 Monday, Savannah Morning News reported. The patient is not presumed to have the virus, the paper said.

Beaufort High School

A Beaufort High School employee has self-quarantined while awaiting COVID-19 results, a district-wide email sent to all parents Wednesday night says.

The employee is not among the 10 positive cases state health officials have identified.

The employee is considered low risk, with no travel to any international or U.S. locations where the virus has been confirmed.

“The employee was tested out of an abundance of caution,” the email says.

District spokesman Jim Foster said the employee was tested Tuesday. The employee was not at the school Tuesday or Wednesday.

Classes at Beaufort High will operate on a normal schedule.

District officials are following recommendations from the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and the S.C. Department of Education, neither of which have recommended closing schools.

Parents will be notified immediately if the situation changes, the release says.

Custodians are continuing to treat all classrooms every day — not only at Beaufort High but at all district schools — with a hospital-grade disinfectant.

USCB prolongs Spring Break

University of South Carolina-Beaufort has extended its spring break by canceling classes next week as a precaution against the coronavirus.

The university is working with the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to monitor the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19, officials said in a news release.

The cancellation March 16-21 affects all classes held in person on Beaufort, Bluffton and Hilton Head Island campuses.

All online classes will continue as scheduled, the release said.

Students are on spring break this week, and those away from campus “have been encouraged to not return to campus until notification that in-person classes will resume,” the release said. “However, university operations will remain open, including residence halls and dining services.”

USCB is a part of the University of South Carolina system. All USC schools have canceled classes for the same time period.

Hospitals increase precautions, restrict visitors

Patients seeking care at Beaufort Memorial Hospital and Express Care clinics are asked to call ahead rather than show up if they have fever and respiratory symptoms, hospital officials said Wednesday.

“Based on their responses, patients could be asked to report to one of two Express Care locations in Beaufort or Bluffton,” the release says.

Patients are likely to receive rapid influenza and strep tests and, in some cases, may be asked to wait in their cars while the tests are administered and processed.

If both tests are negative, patients will be given a Respiratory Virus Panel (RVP) at the hospital’s emergency department.

RVP tests look for a variety of respiratory illnesses, such as rhinovirus and RSV, according to Lap Corp’s website.

“The call-ahead screening process is designed for patients who meet the high-risk criteria for COVID-19, including travel outside of the U.S. in the past 30 days and fever, cough and shortness of breath,” Sherri Rabon, Beaufort Memorial infection prevention manager, said in the release. “The goal is to decrease the risk of exposure to patients and staff, while providing symptomatic patients with clinical screenings and testing quickly and safely.”

The hospital is following steps encouraged by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and SCDHEC.

“For patient convenience, hospital staff may collect upper and lower airway samples at its emergency department and store them for eventual testing by DHEC and CDC,” the release says. “It is important to note that Beaufort Memorial does not provide COVID-19 testing.”

Visit Beaufort Memorial’s website at www.beaufortmemorial.org/coronavirus for more information or email healthupdates@bmhsc.org.

Beaufort County response

Beaufort County officials have been communicating with state health officials, Ashley Jacobs, Beaufort County administrator, said Wednesday.

Employees are stocking supplies for the Beaufort County Detention Center and setting up protocols for Beaufort County EMS.

If Beaufort County has a case of coronavirus, the EMS service will use one specific ambulance to respond to calls about flu-like symptoms, Jacobs said.

“We will assign one truck so we don’t have contamination across the entire system,” Jacobs said.

The Town of Hilton Head Fire Rescue said Tuesday it also will be using one ambulance for respiratory infection calls.

Jacobs said the county has also considered changing employees’ shifts to help with a possible influx of calls. This includes longer shifts for EMS workers.

Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Bob Bromage said an internal plan has been initiated for deputies, including cleaning protective equipment and providing hand sanitizer.

South Carolina cases

DHEC officials have released few details about the individuals who have tested positive for the virus. Here are the cases and the information the agency has acknowledged as of Wednesday afternoon.

• An “older” Camden man, who is self quarantined after testing positive. He previously came in contact with someone who tested positive.
• A Camden woman in her 80s, along with two people who had been in close contact with her.
• A Camden man who had no contact with the woman.
• A Spartanburg County man who recently traveled to Italy.
• A Charleston woman in her 30s who recently traveled to Italy and France and is affiliated with the Medical University of South Carolina.
• Two Camden residents who are household contacts of someone who previously tested positive.

• A Lancaster County woman who has been hospitalized and isolated. She had no known travel outside of the state or contact with another case.

The state has tested a total of 51 individuals for COVID-19, which includes the eight presumptive positive and two confirmed cases.

While state health officials have said there is evidence of community spread, the average person has no reason to panic.

The CDC describes people at higher risk as older adults and anyone with a serious chronic medical condition, such as heart disease, diabetes and lung disease.

It recommends that anyone in the “higher risk” category stock up on supplies, maintain a distance of 6 feet to others, keep away from anyone who is sick, avoid crowds as much as possible, as well as cruise travel and non-essential air travel.

“During the COVID-19 outbreak in your community, stay home as much as possible to further reduce your risk of being exposed,” the CDC website says.

Questions

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This story was originally published March 11, 2020 at 5:29 PM.