The rate of spread of coronavirus in South Carolina is not expected to decrease or increase until the middle of this month, as about 5,700 new cases of COVID-19 are projected for each week, health officials said on Wednesday.
The SC Department of Health and Environmental Control also said that just over a fifth of COVID-19 patients in Palmetto State are 60 years or older, putting them at additional risk of complications that can leave them dead or with effects long-term collateral. Another 19.5% are aged between 21 and 30 years. Other age groups have lower levels of patients with the disease, from 15% of the total for people aged 20 or less to almost 16% for people aged 31 to 40 years.
As students return to school, educators conduct tests on campuses in an attempt to contain leaks. But colleges are already experiencing a wave of infections, including more than 1,000 at the University of South Carolina and 29 at Furman University, where some infected students attended an unauthorized party off campus. This caused the fraternity that organized the party, Kappa Alpha, to be suspended from the school for four years. USC is now considered one of the incidences of the disease among colleges in the country.
The percentage of tests that yield positive results remains high, even if the state processes fewer tests than during the summer. The results of just over 3,000 people were released on Wednesday.
DHEC said there are 240 mobile test clinics scheduled until October 17. Residents can visit scdhec.gov/covid19testing for information on how to test at a mobile clinic or at one of the 236 permanent COVID-19 test facilities.
State figures
New cases reported: 601
Total cases in SC: 118,699, plus 1,804 probable cases
New reported deaths: 26
Total deaths in SC: 2,652, plus 142 probable deaths
Hospitalized patients: 892
Percentage of positive tests: 19.6 percent
Total tests in SC: 1,023,083
Most affected areas
Spartanburg County led the state in new daily cases, with 74 positive tests, according to DHEC. Richland County followed up with 42 new cases and Florence County also recorded 42.
What about the tri-county?
In addition to the 35 new cases from Charleston County, Berkeley had 11 and Dorchester four.
One Berkeley, two Charleston and two Dorchester residents died from COVID-19, said DHEC. Authorities are investigating the deaths of a Berkeley resident and a Charleston resident to see if they had coronavirus.
Deaths
Of the 26 new confirmed deaths, five were from patients aged 35 to 64 years and 21 among people aged 65 and over. They lived in Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Dorchester, Florence, Greenville, Greenwood, Orangeburg, Spartanburg, Sumter and York counties.
Authorities are investigating 11 more deaths that could be related to COVID-19. These victims are from Anderson, Berkeley, Charleston, Cherokee, Greenville, Spartanburg and York counties.
Hospitalizations
DHEC reported that 892 patients with COVID-19 were hospitalized on Wednesday. Of these, 145 were on ventilators and 228 were in intensive care.
What do the experts say?
The authorities continue to urge the South Carolina to avoid staying indoors or less than 2 meters from people without a mask. Several municipalities formalized the request with local ordinances. One of them, Mount Pleasant, decided not to renew his decree imposing masks on Tuesday.
Talk to Sara Coello at 843-937-5705 and follow her on Twitter @smlcoello.