By Ray Rivera | April 21, 2020 at 4: 39 PM EDT – Updated April 21 at 6: 52 PM
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – South Carolina health officials have announced 172 new cases of COVID-19 and 11 additional virus-related deaths.
Those deaths include 8 elderly people from the Lowcountry.
Today’s update brings the total number of people confirmed to have COVID-19 in the state to 4,608, and those who have died to 135, according to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.
New positive cases reported on Tuesday include 8 in Beaufort County, 4 in Berkeley County, 12 in Charleston County, 2 in Dorchester County, and 5 in Orangeburg County.
The new deaths reported today occurred in elderly people. Three were from Beaufort County, two were from Berkeley County, two were from Charleston County, one was from Clarendon County, one was from Colleton County, one was from Greenville County and one was from Spartanburg County.
As of Tuesday afternoon, there have been a total of 42,441 coronavirus tests with 37,833 testing negative and 4,608 testing positive.
Those totals originate from DHEC’s Public Health Laboratory and private labs in the state.
DHEC says 72% of patients have recovered from the virus while 28% remain ill.
The following is a breakdown of total positive cases and total deaths in Lowcountry counties.
| LOWCOUNTRY COUNTIES REPORT FOR TUESDAY, APRIL 21 | TOTAL POSITIVE CASES | TOTAL DEATHS |
|---|---|---|
| Beaufort County | 233 | 9 |
| Berkeley County | 142 | 5 |
| Charleston County | 403 | 5 |
| Colleton County | 23 | 2 |
| Dorchester County | 85 | 1 |
| Georgetown County | 33 | 2 |
| Orangeburg County | 49 | 0 |
| Williamsburg County | 26 | 0 |
Currently, state health officials estimate there are a total of 32,914 total possible cases in the state. The estimate counts represent people who are potentially undiagnosed.
According to state health officials, estimated cases are calculated based on evidence that for every known case of COVID-19, there could be up to 9 people with the virus who remain unidentified in the community
Bell cited a report by the University of Washington’s Institute for Public Health which indicated that South Carolina was estimated to have the most hospital bed use on April 16 and peak deaths on April 9 from COVID-19.
She also revealed a projection which showed that South Carolina may see 750 new cases per week by early May, and the total cases to grow to 6,953 by around May 9.
“Together these two projections indicate the curve may have begun to level for us here in South Carolina,” Bell said. “Modeling projections and data trends vary and they can still change very quickly.”
Bell said based on current data, state health officials are consistently seeing a plateau for cases.
However, she cautioned that the risk of transmission remains high for COVID-19 and urged the public to continue to social distance and stay at home.
DHEC is continuing to encourage South Carolinians to minimize contact with people outside their home to prevent the spread of the disease.
Health officials also recommended the following steps that the public should be doing:
- Monitoring for symptoms
- Practicing social distancing
- Avoiding touching frequently touched items
- Regularly washing your hands
“Anyone with concerns about their health should reach out to their healthcare provider or use the telehealth services provided by several health care systems,” DHEC officials said.
As of Tuesday morning, 4,869 hospital beds are available and 6,511 are utilized, which is a 57.2% statewide hospital bed utilization rate.
The number of new cases reported on Tuesday, April 21 by county are listed below:
Abbeville (1), Aiken (1), Anderson (2), Beaufort (8), Berkeley (4), Charleston (12), Chesterfield (1), Clarendon (6), Darlington (8), Dillon (1), Dorchester (2), Edgefield (5), Fairfield (1), Florence (15), Greenville (17), Greenwood (3), Horry (3), Kershaw (2), Lexington (12), Marion (4), Newberry (2), Oconee (2), Orangeburg (5), Pickens (3), Richland (30), Spartanburg (5), Sumter (14), York (3).
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