Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on March 18
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about coronavirus in South Carolina. Check back for updates.
Cases climb
Another 13 coronavirus cases have been confirmed, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced Wednesday afternoon.
As of the announcement, there are 60 reported cases of the virus in 14 South Carolina counties, The State reported.
Call to release inmates
The state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union sent over 400 letters to South Carolina officials and others, calling for the release of inmates or detainees deemed vulnerable to coronavirus, The State reported.
The group argued that prisoners are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19.
“Public health experts recognize that there is a heightened risk of infection for people who are involved in the criminal justice system from policing, prosecution and pretrial hearings, to sentencing, confinement, and release,” said Shirene Hansotia, the ACLU of South Carolina’s criminal justice policy and legal counsel, in a statement obtained by The State.
Vulnerable prisoners would include those who are elderly or with underlying medical conditions. Among those, only prisoners with two years or less left on their sentences would be eligible for release.
Latest coronavirus cases
Another coronavirus case was reported Wednesday morning, bringing the total in South Carolina to 48.
The patient, a Dorchester County resident, tested positive at Summerville Medical Center.
One person in the state who was diagnosed with COVID-19 has died, according to public health officials.
More than 198,000 cases of the COVID-19 virus have been confirmed worldwide with almost 8,000 deaths as of March 18, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has almost 6,500 confirmed cases with at least 114 deaths.
The wife of an Horry County is among those
Restaurants stop dine-in services
Gov. Henry McMaster ordered all bars and restaurants to stop dine-in services starting Wednesday morning. Takeout and curbside delivery are allowed to continue.
Columbia sets curfew
Columbia city leaders imposed a curfew from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. starting Wednesday The curfew will last 61 days unless it is lifted earlier.
“The following persons are exempted and free to travel to carry out their duties: police officers, firefighters, active duty military, health care providers, and public works and utility workers employed by any public utility, the City of Columbia, the Counties of Richland and Lexington, the State of South Carolina and the United States of America,” the city said in a news release Tuesday night.
“This was a very difficult decision and not a measure we take lightly,” Mayor Steve Benjamin said in the release. “To get through this current public health crisis and to save lives, it will have to be a collective effort between all of us.”
This story was originally published March 18, 2020 at 6:25 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Carolina on March 18."
