Monthly Archives: July 2017

Environmental Public Health Tracking Awareness Week is July 10-14

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Making Connections between Your Health and Environment

EPHT logoSouth Carolina Environmental Public Health Tracking joins the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in celebrating Environmental Public Health Tracking Awareness Week July 10-14.

The CDC has provided funding for South Carolina to build an Environmental Public Health Tracking Program (EPHT) to help inform and protect our citizens. An EPHT program is a nationally integrated information system that enables people to use data to make informed decisions about health issues arising from, or directly related to, environmental factors.

The purpose of EPHT is to make environmental and public health information more accessible and to monitor trends over time. Doing so can help identify patterns and trends leading to interventions, policy change, and development to improve public health and protect communities.

Look for the SC EPHT related posts on Facebook and Twitter during the dates below for Environmental Public Health Tracking Awareness Week. Use #SCEPHT on social media to help spread awareness for DHEC’s EPHT program and how it can help South Carolina’s citizens.

Monday, July 10: Air Quality-Ozone and Particulate Matter

Tuesday, July 11: Hospitalization-Asthma and Heart Attack

 Wednesday, July 12: Childhood Lead Poisoning

Thursday, July 13: Drinking Water

Friday, July 14: Climate and Health

Visit www.scdhec.gov/epht/ to learn more about making informed decisions for yourself and your family concerning health issues related to local environmental factors.

Want To Know The Best Way To Protect Yourself From Mosquito Bites?

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When used as directed, insect repellent is the best way to protect yourself from mosquito bites and the diseases mosquitoes can spread.

It’s important that you use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents with one of the active ingredients below.

  • DEET: Products containing DEET include Cutter, OFF!, Skintastic.
  • Picaridin (also known as KBR 3023, Bayrepel, and icaridin): Products containing picaridin include Cutter Advanced, Skin So Soft Bug Guard Plus, and Autan outside the United States).
  • Oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or PMD: Repel contains OLE.
  • IR3535: Products containing IR3535 include Skin So Soft Bug Guard Plus Expedition and SkinSmart.

EPA-registered insect repellents  – when used correctly – are proven safe and effective, even for pregnant and breastfeeding women. Visit the EPA website for help finding the repellent that’s right for you.

Here are a few tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

For Everyone

  • Always follow the product label instructions.
  • Reapply insect repellent as directed.
  • Do not spray repellent on the skin under clothing.
  • If you are also using sunscreen, apply sunscreen first and insect repellent second.

For Babies and Children

  • Always follow instructions when applying insect repellent to children.
  • Do not use insect repellent on babies younger than 2 months old.
  • Do not apply insect repellent onto a child’s hands, eyes, mouth, and cut or irritated skin.
  • Adults: Spray insect repellent onto your hands and then apply to a child’s face.
  • Do not use products containing oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or para-menthane-diol (PMD) on children under 3 years old.

Visit the EPA website to learn more. You can also find more information about preventing mosquito bites at the DHEC website and the CDC website.

DHEC in the News: Shem Creek, Folly Beach, Rabies, Seismic Testing

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from across South Carolina.

Keep local creeks clean

Charleston, SC (Post and Courier) – There could be as many as 18 failing septic tanks lining the Shem Creek watershed in Mount Pleasant, potentially leaking harmful fecal bacteria into one of the town’s most popular recreational attractions. And that could be the best case scenario, considering that the town’s latest information is 10 years old.

Sand from the Folly River would be used to fix Folly east end beaches under city plan

Folly Beach, SC (Post and Courier) – Folly Beach wants to use sand from the Folly River to restore beaches on the east end of the island where hurricanes Joaquin and Matthew did heavy damage.

The city has submitted an application for the work to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Some 18,000 dump truck loads of sand from the river would be placed on 26 acres of beach between 8th Street East and 14th Street East, according to the application.

Rabid Woodchuck found in Oconee Co.

Oconee County, SC (WSPA) – … one person has been referred to their healthcare provider for consultation after being potentially exposed to rabies by a woodchuck, also known as a groundhog or whistle pig, which tested positive for the disease.

Two woodchucks were observed fighting with one another before one turned on the victim, who was subsequently bitten and scratched. This exposure occurred near the intersection of Playground Road and Highway 28 South in Walhalla. One of the woodchucks was submitted to DHEC’s laboratory for testing on July 3 and was confirmed to have rabies the same day. The other woodchuck was not available for testing.

NOAA gives more time to comment on offshore seismic tests

Charleston, SC (Post and Courier) – Federal regulators are giving people two more weeks to comment on plans for permitting seismic testing offshore because of the deluge of comments already received. Drill-or-don’t-drill has become a controversy.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has received thousands of comments, a news release said.

More information about seismic surveying is available on our website.

It’s Hot: Take steps to help stay cool

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Over the next day or two, the National Weather Service is forecasting temperatures in the mid- to upper-90s in some parts of South Carolina, with the heat index reaching above 100 degrees.

The heat index indicates how hot it actually feels to the body when relative humidity is combined with the air temperature. The heat index increases as the air temperature and relative humidity increase. Humid conditions make the body feel warmer.

When the body gets too hot, it uses sweat to cool off.  If that sweat is not able to evaporate, the body cannot regulate its temperature and struggles to cool itself.  When sweat evaporates, it reduces the body’s temperature

As you move about during these and other hot days to come, DHEC urges you to follow the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s three tips for preventing heat-related illnesses: Stay cool. Stay hydrated. Stay informed.

Stay cool:

  • Wear appropriate, lightweight clothing
  • Stay in an air-conditioned place as much as possible
  • Schedule outdoor activities carefully
  • Pace yourself; cut down on exercising when it is hot
  • Wear sunscreen

DO NOT LEAVE CHILDREN OR PETS IN CARS, EVEN IF THE WINDOW IS CRACKED!

Stay Hydrated

  • Drink plenty of fluids (Avoid very sugary or alcoholic drinks)
  • Replace salt and minerals lost due to sweating
  • Keep your pets hydrated

Stay Informed

  • Check for weather updates via local news
  • Know the signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses
  • Monitor those at high risk:
  • Infants and young children
  • People 65 years of age or older
  • People who are overweight
  • People who overexert during work or exercise
  • People who are physically ill, especially with heart disease or high blood pressure, or who take certain medications, such as for depression or poor circulation
  • Visit and closely watch adults at risk at least twice a day

Visit the CDC website for more information on extreme heat.

DHEC in the News: Opiods, bats, rising sea level

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Midlands Deputies Use Narcan to Fight Opioid Epidemic

Kershaw County, SC (WLTX) – The opioid epidemic is becoming a major problem in our state and now one county’s deputies have a new tool that could save lives.

Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office deputies are being trained how to use Narcan, a life-saving opiate overdose antidote. …

“Police officers get to the area a lot earlier,” DHEC EMS Director Arnold Alier said of the importance of law enforcement officers having Narcan.

DHEC warns Myrtle Beach condo residents about rabies after multiple bat sighting

Myrtle Beach, S.C. (WPDE) — A letter was recently sent to residents at Magnolia North Condos, in Myrtle Beach, after multiple bat sightings were reported, including one incident where a bat was inside a condo.

The letter from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control says that on June 20th there was a report of a bat inside a condo and additional bat sightings have been reported over the past eight months around the complex.

General Interest

New warnings on sea rise

Downtown Charleston flooded on roughly one out of every seven days last year. That’s more than just a record-breaking number of tidal inundations, it’s an alarming warning of a much wetter future for the city.

It’s a call to action.

Maybe the 50 flooded days Charleston endured in 2016 represent an outlier. After all, the previous record, set in 2015, was 38 days. It was 11 in 2014.