On Friday, March 31, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) unveiled a newly restored memorabilia display honoring our former, beloved Commissioner, Michael “Mike” D. Jarrett.
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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.
Oyster beds near Stono River will reopen on Tuesday after sewer spill
Oyster beds in the vicinity of the Stono River will reopen to harvesting Tuesday, state regulators said Monday.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control are reopening beds from Charleston Harbor south to the North Edisto River as of sunrise, after testing showed the waters were safe again. The beds were closed in late February after a town of Hollywood sewerline spilled at least 2.4 million gallons from Feb. 19 to Feb. 26, according to DHEC.
Horry County joins DHEC mosquito trapping program
Horry County Stormwater officials have a plan to improve how they locate areas with substantial mosquito populations, in order to conduct spraying.
The Stormwater Department has joined DHEC’s mosquito trapping program. …
“We’re already starting to see them. We are starting to get service requests in,” said James Brock, Horry County Mosquito Control Supervisor.
Columbia Restaurants Can Donate Food Instead of Throwing It Away with App
Columbia, SC (WLTX) – The City of Columbia is working to combat hunger in the area and thanks to an app, everyone can get involved.
According to the State Department of Health and Environmental Control, 1 in 8 adults go hungry and for children those odds are 1 in 6. The Columbia Food Policy Committee is working to change those numbers with the help of restaurants and volunteers.
Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.
MUSC extends visitor restrictions as flu cases continue mounting
Visitor restrictions have been extended at Medical University Hospital through Jan. 29 as the flu continues to ravage the Lowcountry.
Visitors may only visit inpatients and patients in the emergency department and will be restricted to a patient’s immediate family members only, including partners, significant others, spouses, parents, children and caregivers.
DHEC grant funds waste tire recycling upgrades in county
BAMBERG — Bamberg County is utilizing a South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control grant in the amount of $254,250 to improvement its waste tire recycling.
SCDHEC announced the grant in May.
As a result, the county has been able to purchase a new roll-off truck and six 30-yard containers in addition to making Convenience and Recycling site improvements, such as privacy fencing and new carport covers.
General Interest
700,000+ gallons of sewage spilled in Columbia in ’17 — but that’s a big improvement
Nasty, poorly treated sewage remains a threat to Columbia rivers, but city officials and a riverkeeper group are encouraged by data showing the volume of spills was down last year.
For the first time in five years of compiling sewage spill data, the Congaree Riverkeeper says spills dropped below 1 million gallons in 2017. The group reports that utilities, led by the city of Columbia, released 758,000 gallons of untreated wastewater.
Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.
As more mosquito pools test positive for West Nile, Midlands residents advised to protect themselves
COLUMBIA, SC — State health officials reported more West Nile-positive mosquito pools in Richland County this year than all other areas of the state combined.
As of August 15, 22 virus-positive pools were found in Richland County compared to 9 each in Greenville and Beaufort counties and 2 in York County, DHEC reported on its 2017 West Nile map. More birds in this area have tested positive for the virus as well.
Area governments have announced aggressive spraying campaigns to keep mosquito populations in check but citizens are encouraged to take responsibility for their own and their family’s health.
8 confirmed shark bites this summer on Hilton Head. Why so many?
Carrie Rogiers was shocked to find out a shark was responsible for the “Freddy-Krueger-like” marks on her daughter’s left foot.
The bite came July 20 as 8-year-old Ellie, of Fort Thomas, Ky., was swimming in shallow water on Hilton Head Island’s South Forest Beach.
“Something bit me,” the child shouted as she ran from the surf.
General Interest
Could a cloudy eclipse day mean a mass exodus – and traffic nightmare – for Columbia?
COLUMBIA, SC — As hard as it is to predict what Columbia will be like for Monday’s once-in-a-lifetime total eclipse, a questionable weather forecast isn’t making it any easier.
If it’s cloudy in the capital city, it’s possible many of the tens or even hundreds of thousands of people expected in town could consider fleeing on short notice to find clearer vantage points – perhaps to the Upstate.
That could mean a “nightmare” on the roads, said Tiffany Wright, a spokeswoman for AAA Carolinas.
Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.
Health officials encourage parents to get child vaccinated
(WSPA) – At the end of every summer, most parents begin to stress about one thing.
“Oh goodness, going back to school is always a kind of crazy time school shopping for school supplies usually new shoes and new clothes,” said Erin VanDuinen, Anderson County parent.
But it also typically includes that yearly visit to the doctor. There are a number of immunizations that are required for your child prior to heading back to school.
“Its prevention, you are preventing a lot of major illnesses or death just by getting a simple shot,” said nurse Amber Littmann.
Opioid addiction is a complex problem that has to been seen more as a medical condition, and less as a moral failure, if addicts are to get the help they need, health and law enforcement officials say.
“There is not a silver bullet, but I think that the United States government needs to step up to the plate and do more to treat it more kindly and participate in finding ways to treat it more effectively,” Dr. Monnie Singleton of Singleton Health Center in Orangeburg said.
“Incarceration doesn’t do a thing. … What they need to do is really embrace the fact that opioid addiction is a medical condition,” he said.
Opioid prescription rates have been linked to addiction and overdose.
One City Two Canals at Columbia’s Riverfront Park offers update from flood
Columbia, SC (WLTX) – The One City Two Canals tour on Columbia’s Riverfront Park came with a flood update and a cool history lesson Saturday afternoon.
If you want to know anything about Riverfront Park, you ask Park Ranger Karen Swank Kustafik. When the October flood of 2015 hit this area, it breached the oldest hydro’s. “That’s pretty remarkable because it had been operating consistently from 1898 until October 2015” said Kustafik.
All last year they had a series of engineering tests as a part of the re-building plan. Divers were also taking pictures of the head gates that allow water to come into or out of the Columbia Canal.
Live Healthy S.C. 