16-year-old dies after testing positive for COVID-19 in Lancaster Co., S.C.

LANCASTER, S.C. (WBTV) - A 16-year-old in Lancaster County has died following a COVID-19 diagnosis.

According to Chief Deputy Coroner Jennifer Collins, the teen died Aug. 12 of the virus.

Lancaster County School District officials provided a statement about the student’s death.

“We are saddened to learn of the passing of a 16-year-old Andrew Jackson High student from COVID complications. Counselors are available to staff and will also be available to students on the first day of school, Monday, August 16 and through the week. The district continues to follow guidance from the CDC and SC DHEC. It is the district’s priority to keep students safe. Our thoughts and prayers are with the student’s family,” the statement read.

The teen’s death comes just days after South Carolina hit its 10,000th COVID-related death.

[SC surpasses 10,000 COVID deaths, state health department says]

“To all those families across South Carolina, I want to say my deepest sympathy is with you. I know I also speak on behalf of the thousands of dedicated DHEC employees across our great state who are working non-stop to help prevent more lives from being lost,” read a statement released by South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Director Dr. Edward Simmer regarding the grim milestone.

[Newest COVID-19 data in South Carolina]

It is unclear whether or not the teen was vaccinated and because of their age, the state will not be releasing their name.

Since the pandemic began, there have been more than 535,000 confirmed cases and healthcare providers have noted a recent uptick in cases among kids and teens.

[Delta variant and kids: Charlotte pediatrician says rise in pediatric COVID-19 cases is comparable to surge in January]

“It’s hard to quantify exactly how many cases because this increase has happened so dramatically over the past two weeks, but what we can tell you is that the rate of increase over the past month looks very much like the January spike in terms of how quickly the caseload is going up,” Dr. Catherine Ohmstede, from Novant Health, earlier in the month.

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