1,599 new cases of COVID-19, and 15 additional death in South Carolina

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - DHEC officials have announced the highest number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in a single day with 1,599 cases on Saturday. 15 additional deaths were confirmed from the coronavirus.

Saturday’s update brings the total number of people confirmed to have COVID-19 in the state to 31,850, and those who have died to 707, according to the Department of Health and Environmental Control.

State health officials also announced three new probable cases of COVID-19 and two additional probable deaths on Saturday.

As of Saturday morning, 2,778 inpatient hospital beds are available and 7,728 are in use, which is a 73.56% statewide hospital bed utilization rate. Of the 7,728 inpatient beds currently used, 908 are occupied by patients who have either tested positive or are under investigation for COVID-19.

The following is a breakdown provided by DHEC of total positive cases and total deaths in Lowcountry counties.

The number of new cases reported on Saturday, June 27 by county are listed below:

Abbeville (3), Aiken (11), Allendale (1), Anderson (27), Bamberg (1), Barnwell (3), Beaufort (54), Berkeley (39), Calhoun (1), Charleston (280), Cherokee (6), Chester (3), Chesterfield (10), Clarendon (6), Colleton (11), Darlington (11), Dillon (8), Dorchester (53), Edgefield (1), Fairfield (8), Florence (40), Georgetown (40), Greenville (164), Greenwood (41), Hampton (3), Horry (214), Jasper (7), Kershaw (8), Lancaster (19), Laurens (31), Lee (3), Lexington (76), Marion (5), Newberry (3), Oconee (29), Orangeburg (22), Pickens (64), Richland (111), Saluda (6), Spartanburg (60), Sumter (48), Union (1), Williamsburg (13), York (54).

The number of new probable cases are listed below:

Greenwood (1), Spartanburg (2)

The confirmed deaths occurred in 10 elderly individuals are listed below:

Bamberg (1), Cherokee (1), Dillon (1), Florence (1), Greenville (1), Greenwood (1), Hampton (1), Horry (1), Lexington (2), and Marion (1) counties, and five middle-aged individuals from Greenville (1), Horry (1), Lancaster (1), Orangeburg (1), and Sumter (1) counties.

The probable deaths occurred in an elderly individual from Greenwood County (1), and an individual whose age category is still being determined from Spartanburg County (1).

DHEC released the following information on specific cases.

A confirmed case is an individual who had a confirmatory viral test performed by way of a throat or nose swab and that specimen tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, which is the virus that causes COVID-19. A positive viral test, also called a PCR test or molecular test, alone is enough to classify a confirmed case.

• A probable case is an individual who has not had a confirmatory viral test performed but has: epidemiologic evidence and clinical evidence of infection, or a positive antibody blood test and either epidemiologic evidence or clinical evidence. (A positive antibody test alone is currently not a reliable method for diagnosing a COVID-19 infection.)
• A confirmed death is someone whose death is related to COVID-19 and who tested positive with a confirmatory viral test for COVID-19.
• A probable death is an individual whose death certificate lists COVID-19 disease or SARS-CoV-2 as a cause of death or a significant condition contributing to death but did not undergo confirmatory viral testing.

As of Friday, a total of 389,096 tests have been conducted in the state, according to health officials.

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