Beaufort County shellfish harvesting reopens ... in some places

After Hurricane Matthew’s excessive rainfall shut down shellfish harvesting in portions of Beaufort County, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced the reopening of some areas Tuesday, according to an agency news release.

"Water quality data indicate that these approved harvesting areas are suitable for harvesting," Mike Pearson, manager of DHEC's Shellfish Sanitation Section, said in the news release. "This reopening includes the approved shellfish beds in Area 14 which includes the Coosaw River, Bull River, Combahee River, Ashepoo River and the Morgan Back Creeks."

Some areas in Charleston and Colleton counties opened last week.

DHEC will reopen the remaining areas as soon as it is safe to do so, the release said.

For a more detailed look at which places are open, visit http://www.scdhec.gov/FoodSafety/ShellfishMonitoring/Map/.

For more information, call DHEC's Shellfish Harvesting and Closure Information Line at 1-800-285-1618.

This story was originally published October 25, 2016 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Beaufort County shellfish harvesting reopens ... in some places."