COLUMBIA — South Carolina and the rest of the nation are experiencing an uptick in COVID-19 cases.
In a recent release, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) officials encouraged residents to track levels of COVID-19 in their counties using the map provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and follow the masking recommendations for high and medium community levels.
Several counties in the Pee Dee, including Marlboro County, are experiencing high or medium levels of COVID-19.
“We are seeing significant increases in COVID-19 cases across our state, and we know there are a lot more cases that aren’t being reported due to the use of nonreportable home tests,” said Dr. Brannon Traxler, DHEC Public Health Director. “Masking remains one of the best ways to limit virus spread and the CDC has a great resource to help determine when to mask in public.”
The CDC’s Community Levels Map is updated every Thursday.
It currently shows that Marlboro, Chesterfield, Florence, Dillion, Marion, and Darlington are red counties. This means those are counties with high transmission, Masking is recommended for everyone in indoor settings, including schools and workplaces.
COVID-19 cases have been on the rise for the last several weeks. For the week ending on Oct. 29, DHEC reported 3,459 cases. Numbers have risen almost every week since then, including the most recent week ending on Jan. 7 totaling 11,030 cases.
“Fortunately, we have not seen a significant uptick in severe cases, meaning those that end in hospitalizations and deaths,” Traxler said. “We want that trend to continue and masking when recommended is an effective way to keep each other out of the hospital and eventually bring case numbers down.”
In addition to masking, staying up to date on vaccinations and boosters — as well as testing when recommended — are important steps in preventing COVID-19 spread, they said.