President Trump declared a national emergency and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster a state of emergency Friday as coronavirus cases rose across the country and event organizers canceled gatherings.

As of Friday afternoon, Beaufort County School District and all but two others will remain open. McMaster’s state of emergency closes schools in Lancaster and Kershaw counties, where there is evidence of possible community spreading. The districts will remain closed for 14 days.

The governor ordered the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control to consult with the state’s superintendent of education and local districts about “when remaining school districts should decide to close and for what period of time.”

Thirteen people have tested positive for the coronavirus in the state as of Friday. None was in Beaufort County, according to a S. C. Department of Health and Environmental Control email.

DHEC has tested 123 people in the state as of Friday.

Visitation at Beaufort County Detention Center and all other state and local correctional facilities has been suspended with the state of emergency order.

DHEC also has begun restricting all visitors to all nursing homes — including Beaufort County — with the exception of end-of-life situations.

Organizers of The RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing on Hilton Head Island were still hopeful Friday that the event April 13-19 would go on, but the Masters golf tournament has been postponed and other tournaments were canceled.

With the cancellation of graduation ceremonies at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, and other would-be visitors already wary amid coronavirus concerns, the local hospitality industry is bracing.

Churches across Beaufort County are changing worship practices in light of health officials’ advice to avoid close contact.

Meanwhile, shoppers have found empty shelves where toilet paper used to be, and stores have posted notices to shoppers limiting purchases of high-demand items such as paper products, flu medicine and hand sanitizer.

Beaufort County School District

Beaufort County School District officials say they are basing their decisions about school scheduling on recommendations from state DHEC officials, which as of this time are to remain open, according to district spokesperson Jim Foster.

In response to the COVID-19 virus, this week the district:

• Has continued to use hospital-grade disinfectant on classrooms, light switches, door handles and other shared hard surfaces

• Has postponed all “non-essential out-of-district student trips for 30 days,” starting March 12

• Has temporarily suspended all student internships in health care-related facilities, affecting about 50 students

• Continues to post daily COVID-19 updates on its website at www.beaufortschools.net.

RBC Heritage

As other major events on Hilton Head Island have been canceled such as the St. Patrick’s Day parade and festivities, The RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing on Hilton Head Island remained scheduled for April 13-19.

on Friday, the PGA canceled the Masters Tournament, which was planned for the week ahead of RBC Heritage.

Heritage tournament director Steve Wilmot said that no decision had been made to cancel. Tents and bleachers are going up at Harbour Town and utility workers are on the property, he said.

Hilton Head EMS

Four Hilton Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue personnel were being monitored at the town’s fire station Thursday after responding to an incident in which the individual exhibited respiratory issues.

The four remained at the fire station until the test results for the patient were received, which were negative for COVID-19, a town press release says.

Friday morning, Fire Rescue placed an additional ambulance in service that will be dedicated to 911 calls for patients with flu-like symptoms.

Fire Rescue also will increase its level of personal protective equipment on certain calls. That means the staff may be wearing a mask, eye protection, and gowns as guidelines require, the release says.

Beaufort County hospitals

From Hilton Head Island to Beaufort, hospitals in the county implemented new restrictions.

Beaufort Memorial Hospital is setting up a drive-thru testing facility along with limiting one visitor per patient as four of its staff members remain in quarantine after coming in contact with two people who were possibly exposed to coronavirus.

The hospital created the testing site to allow patients with a physician order for a COVID-19 test to “drive thru” and have their specimen collected quickly from the safety of their vehicle.

“The site will open access to testing and mitigate potential community exposure to the virus,” a release says.

It will be available 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 1-5 p.m. on Sunday.

The drive-thru is located near the Beaufort Memorial Medical and Administrative Center at 990 Ribaut Road in Beaufort.

A separate emergency room for ill patients is being created inside of the hospital as well.

Patients at the hospital also have been limited to one visitor.

Hilton Head Hospital will limit visitors to two per patient, officials said Friday.

Both hospitals will restrict visitors to 18 and older. Visitors also must not have a fever or lower respiratory illness such as cough or shortness of breath.

“These measures will be in effect until we are advised by the CDC or the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control that it is safe to return to normal visiting practices,” Daisy Burroughs, hospital spokesperson said via email.

Beaufort County churches

Churches across Beaufort County are making changes to services in light of health officials’ advice to avoid close contact amid the spread of coronavirus.

Multiple churches told the newspaper about plans to make decisions one week at a time. Churches are inviting members to find services streamed online and telling those who attend in person to avoid hugging or shaking hands

At St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church in Bluffton, flu precautions have been in place since December, said parish manager Suzette Greiner. She said so many members are retirees and vulnerable to the flu that, for the past four to five years, they’ve switched to a wafer-only communion for flu season.

Now, though, the church is ramping up those precautions by removing hymnals and other items that a lot of people might touch, Greiner said.

This follows a directive from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston. In a news release on Thursday, the diocese outlined measures churches should take to limit the spread of COVID-19. Those include removing holy water from the hand-fonts, not holding hands during prayer, and administering communion by hand only.

The Anglican Diocese of South Carolina postponed its convention scheduled for this week at The Church of the Cross in Bluffton, according to a message posted on the diocese website.

The Rev. Jon Black from Campbell Chapel AME in Old Town Bluffton said his church was planning to open the balcony and fellowship hall to encourage people to put some space between themselves during Sunday’s services. With advice from a member who is a physician, the congregation will make decisions about what to do next, he said.

This story was originally published March 13, 2020 at 6:10 PM.