Coronavirus cases rise in York, Lancaster counties as SC total reaches 5,490
Four more cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in York County, and three more cases have been reported in Lancaster County, South Carolina health officials announced Sunday.
The Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 237 new cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, across the state, for a total of 5,490 positive tests in all 46 counties.
Now, there have been 181 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in York County since the pandemic started, according to DHEC. Lancaster County has had 87 and Chester County, which did not report any new cases Sunday, has had 27 cases, according to DHEC.
In addition to the new cases, the department announced that eight other individuals have died in Clarendon, Darlington, Greenville, Colleton and Richland counties. Six of the recent deaths involved elderly individuals, according to DHEC.
Based on DHEC’s count, there have been 174 coronavirus-related deaths in South Carolina. Three residents in York County and three residents in Lancaster County have died after contracting the virus.
More than 50,000 coronavirus tests had been completed by DHEC’s public lab and private labs in the state as of Sunday, and roughly 11% of tests have come back positive, according to the department.
Rock Hill Mayor John Gettys told The Herald this week that he is proud of how people in the area have been following social distancing measures and encouraged people to continue to do so.
“But we do have to always think about those who are a little bit less healthy and a little bit older in age, and recognize also that there is a mental and emotional aspect of this as well,” he said. “And those are the people who are really concerned about what might happen, and rightfully so. We have to temper all that as best we can.”
On Sunday, Bojangles’ officials confirmed an employee at its Lancaster restaurant tested positive for the coronavirus and the store was closed Friday for cleaning.
New projections released Sunday by DHEC show that there is a good number of cases unreported in the area. The department calculated that there are up to 1,112 unidentified cases in York County. DHEC estimated Lancaster County has as many as 534 unidentified cases, and Chester County has up to 166 unidentified cases.
According to its website, DHEC calculates the projected cases based on evidence that for every known case, there could be up to nine unidentified people with the virus.
Confirmed cases by ZIP codes
As of Saturday night, there are cases in the following York County ZIP codes:
- 29704 - 1
- 29708 - 21
- 29710 - 32
- 29715 - 30
- 29717 - 2
- 29730 - 31
- 29732 - 51
- 29745 - 10
There are cases in the following Lancaster County ZIP codes:
- 29058 - 4
- 29067 - 6
- 29707 - 19
- 29720 - 62
There are cases in the following Chester County ZIP codes:
- 29014 - 2
- 29055 - 5
- 29706 - 13
- 29712 - 1
- 29714 - 5
Local severe weather update
York County emergency management director Chuck Haynes told The Herald on Sunday that there was minimal damage from the weekend’s severe weather.
“We had some hail, but no real damage and no injuries,” Haynes said.
The warning sirens were activated Saturday night. Haynes said that while people should rely on their own technology — a weather radio, an app on their phone — in addition to the sirens for maximum safety, his team activated the sirens to err on the side of caution.
“There are a lot of people who fish at night,” Haynes said. “This time of year is when fishing activities really pick up on the lake.”
This story was originally published April 26, 2020 at 4:16 PM.
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