Coronavirus moves to 2 new counties in latest 6 cases confirmed by health department
Cases of the coronavirus have been found in Beaufort and Lexington counties, as well as two more cases in Kershaw County.
The six new cases of COVID-19 were announced Saturday afternoon by the Department of Health and Environmental Control, bringing to 19 the total number of positives cases confirmed by state health officials.
Three of the new cases are in Beaufort County, a county that had previously been spared from the illness. Two of the cases are people who are in close contact to each other — and who health officials knew had been exposed to the virus in another part of the state, according to a DHEC statement. The third person with the virus has no known connection to any other patients in South Carolina, but had recently traveled internationally.
The DHEC said that all three people are isolated at their homes.
The DHEC said that health workers in Kershaw County had discovered two new cases of COVID-19; officials are still investigating how these latest cases were exposed to the virus. The DHEC said both people in the new Kershaw cases have been hospitalized and isolated.
The sixth new case is a man who lived in Lexington nursing home run by Lexington Medical Center. He was transferred from the nursing home to the hospital. The DHEC said the man had “no known exposure to another case” and no travel history to an area where the virus is present.
Like Beaufort County, Lexington County had previously been free of the virus.
State Epidemiologist Linda Bell said that officials are working closely with the Lexington nursing home “to immediately investigate possible exposures in an effort to mitigate any potential spread at this facility.” Bell said the nursing home has been “completely cooperative” in working with the DHEC, and that the facility is following the procedures recommended by the DHEC and the Centers for Disease Control to help “protect this higher-risk population.”
A nursing home in Washington has been devastated by the coronavirus. At the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington, 22 people associated with the nursing home have died of COVID-19 with more than 30 others testing positive, The Kansas City Star reported.
After a Friday emergency declaration by Gov. Henry McMaster, the DHEC began limiting visitation to nursing homes and assisted living facilities “with the exception of end-of-life situations.” The DHEC said this was a necessary step because elderly people are more vulnerable to COVID-19.
“Our top priorities remain preventing the spread of the disease and protecting the public health,” Bell said.
“We encourage the public to maintain their daily routines of protecting against illness by practicing good hygiene and handwashing,” Bell said, “and individuals with signs of illness are asked to take seriously the recommendation to stay home from school and work and not attend public gatherings.”
Kershaw number grows
The latest diagnoses add to a growing number in Kershaw County, an area that has the most confirmed and presumptive cases of the coronavirus. According to state health officials, Kershaw County now has 11 cases — most of which are near Camden.
The DHEC is encouraging people to practice “social distancing” to help stop the spread of the virus. Social distancing is staying away from unneeded interactions with sick people and from large groups of people; it also calls for remaining at home unless it is absolutely necessary to go out.
According to the DHEC, the most common symptoms of the coronavirus are fever, cough and shortness of breath. The department is encouraging people who experience these symptoms to visit a doctor or get a free screening through an online visit with a health care professional from MUSC or other regional hospitals. The free online screenings can be accessed by going to scdhec.gov/COVID19.
Worldwide, more than 155,000 people are infected with the coronavirus — and nearly 6,000 have died, according to John Hopkins University. As of yet no deaths from the illness have been reported in South Carolina., and McMaster has repeatedly said that the state is ready and prepared to deal with the virus.
This story was originally published March 14, 2020 at 4:43 PM.