Community Briefs
All Anderson County Library System locations are now open for browsing and computer use. Patrons may browse, check out, use public computers, print, copy, and fax. Meeting and study rooms are unavailable. Patrons who have symptoms or who have tested positive for Covid-19 within the past 10 days should not enter the library, but may call for curbside pickup.
The Williamston Planning Commission recently met and discussed the following items:
Parking of Campers and RVs (Sec. 90-274); Possible Food Truck Ordinance and discussed whether all activities permitted in the OC-Office Commerical District should also be permitted in the RC-Residential/Commercial District
Regional Briefs
South Carolina’s allotment of tickets for the Reedy River Rivalry baseball game between Carolina and Clemson set for Saturday, February 27 at Fluor Field in Greenville is sold out. Due to capacity limitations driven by COVID-19, both teams had less than 500 tickets available for purchase by their respective fan bases, and accordingly, supply was extremely limited.
The Ware Shoals Observer printed its final edition on Dec. 2. Dan and Faye Branyon, who have published the weekly community newspaper for 39 years, recently announced they have suspended publication indefinitely due to serious health issues.
The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) Freshwater Fisheries division has started the process of stocking thousands of catchable-sized (8 – 11-inch) trout into the lower Saluda River near Columbia.
The rainbow and brown trout that are raised and transported from the Walhalla State Fish Hatchery in Oconee County will be delivered by trucking fish to multiple locations in the Lower Saluda River.
The cold waters released from the bottom of Lake Murray provide suitable habitat for the trout creating a unique and very popular fishery in the Midlands of South Carolina.
Tusday was Groundhog Day! The day when Punxsutawney Phil leaves his burrow to look for his shadow, predicting an early spring or a long winter. According to legend, if he sees his shadow, which he did Tuesday morning, that’s six more weeks of winter — if he doesn’t, just six more weeks until spring. Punxsutawney Phil was awakened at 7:25 a.m. and made his prediction Tuesday morning at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.
SCDHEC COVID-19 Briefs
(DHEC) reported a change in the way percent positive is calculated for COVID-19 cases. The change will allow South Carolina percent positive calculations to be more easily compared to those used by federal entities, including the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). DHEC is now reporting percent positive using the tests-over-tests method. Percent positive is now calculated by dividing all positive COVID-19 tests by the total number of COVID-19 tests (positive and negative), and then multiplying the result by 100 to get a percent. With the change, the public will notice a big drop in the number representing percent positive. That does not mean the level of spread in the community has decreased. Percent positive will appear to be lower only because it is calculated differently.
A 17 year old SC teenager died this week from Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) associated with COVID-19. This is the first death in the state related to MIS-C reported DHEC. MIS-C is a rare health condition that occurs in some children and teenagers who have contracted COVID-19 or been in contact with someone infected with the virus. At least 42 cases of MIS-C have been reported among children in state.
