Lexington County covid-19 cases are taking a toll on health care workers.

Department of Health and Environmental Control officials blame the delta variant for the sudden surge.

Lexington Medical Center officials say their facilities are near capacity.

LMC President Tod Augsburger told the Lexington County Chronicle that few patient beds, intensive care units or ventilators are left.

“If you have to go to the emergency room,” he said, “expect a long wait.”

LMC’s Jennifer Wilson said more ventilators can be obtained and as of 7 am Aug. 17 the hospital had:

• 494 total inpatients with 90% of all available beds occupied. ICU beds remain a high priority.

• 154 covid inpatients, down from the day before.

• 88% are only partially vaccinated or unvaccinated. 30% are in ICU. 3 of 47 ICU patients are fully vaccinated.

• 31% are on ventilators.

• 62 vented patients are in the hospital.

77% are covid+ patients. Other SC hospitals report

Other SC hospitals report that 8,920 inpatient beds are in use – 78.6% of capacity, according to DHEC.

Another 77.2% of the ICU beds are being used, 27% of which are covid-19 patients.

DHEC reported that 10,007 South Carolinians have died of covid-related illness since early last year.

DHEC Director Dr. Edward Simmer said the “only way to prevent more lives from being lost” is through vaccination.

1.9 million of more than 5 million South Carolinians are fully vaccinated, he said.

That’s only about 45% of the state’s population who are eligible for vaccination.

That doesn’t include children under age 12 who “depend on the rest of us to protect them,” Simmer said.

“Until we reach a critical percentage of South Carolinians vaccinated we are not out of danger. The longer that takes, the more time the virus has to mutate into new, harder-to-control variants,” he said.

DHEC reported 2,560 new cases, the 10th consecutive day of at least 2,000 new positive test results.

SC has had more than 648,000 confirmed and probable cases since 2020.