COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina has exceeded 6,000 new daily cases of the coronavirus and has recorded the third highest daily total seen at any time during the pandemic.
The state's health agency, DHEC, reported 6,697 new daily cases statewide on Friday, which is based on testing numbers from Wednesday, August 25. That total is the highest seen during the latest summer surge and is the third-highest total ever during the entire pandemic: only on January 6 and January 8 of 2021 were higher numbers recorded.
The state also reported 39 new deaths.
In the Midlands, Lexington County had the highest total with 558 cases, followed by Richland County with 480. Greenville led the state with 596. You can see a full county-by-county list here.
The previous high in the summer surge was one week earlier when 5,238 cases were reported in the state.
The troubling numbers show what doctors have been warning for some time, namely that the Delta variant of the coronavirus continues to accelerate in the state.
Hospitals continue to fill up as well. There are 2,138 people hospitalized with the virus right now, with 513 in ICU. While the hospitalization number is not a record, the ICU number is higher than at any other time during the pandemic, based on an analysis by News19 of daily numbers reported by DHEC.
Doctors continue to stress that a much higher vaccination rate is needed to beat back the spread of the disease, saying the unvaccinated are the overwhelming majority of people in the hospital. Vaccinations are available for ages 12 and up at many locations across the state. Visit DHEC’s information page for more information on the vaccines, and the locator page to schedule a vaccine appointment.