After nearly two months of combating the spread of coronavirus, South Carolina has plateaued and should see the number of cases begin to drop off — but only if South Carolinians continue to keep their distance from one another.
That was the message Dr. Linda Bell, South Carolina’s state epidemiologist, gave to a meeting of the Midlands Coronavirus Task Force on Thursday.
“We are at the plateau, but we are not on a downward trend, and we want to see a downward trend,” Bell said. As the state’s economy now begins to reopen, “I cannot emphasize enough that we have to maintain social distancing.”
That’s particularly important in the Midlands, where Richland County has been hit with the largest number of cases in the state, especially in the African-American community. Bell said Richland ranks fifth statewide in the per capita rate of cases, at 174 per 100,000 residents. As of Tuesday, 15 people have died of COVID-19 in Richland County, also the highest in the state.
Keep your distance as SC begins to reopen, or COVID-19 cases could grow. https://t.co/lZbTs1v7OE
— The State Newspaper (@thestate) April 23, 2020