Where in Horry County is COVID spreading most? See where your ZIP code lands
The number of new COVID-19 cases reported in Horry County over the last week has dropped slightly from the week before, but the county is still adding thousands of new cases each week.
In the week of Sept. 5 through Sept. 12, the county reported 2,203 new coronavirus cases, down from 3,138 the week before and 2,904 the week of August 22 through August 29, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The hotspots in the county have also shifted since The Sun News last reported the ZIP codes with the most and least new cases, and the concentration of cases across Horry County has evened out. The rate of new cases across ZIP codes doesn’t have as wide of a range as it did two weeks ago, according to data from DHEC.
At the end of August, case rates varied widely, with some ZIP codes reporting as many as 19 cases per 1,000 residents while others reported single digits. In the week of Sept. 5 through Sept. 12, all Horry County ZIP codes reported fewer than 10 cases per 1,000 residents.
Vaccination rates also vary widely across ZIP codes in Horry County, as the coastal cities are generally vaccinated at a higher rate than the more rural parts of Horry County, potentially contributing to the difference in case rates as the county and the state grapple with the contagious delta variant and vaccination rates below the desired level.
DHEC reports the number of cases in each ZIP code weekly, and the incidence rate is calculated by comparing the number of cases that week to the population of each area.
Horry County ZIP codes ranked by COVID-19 incidence rate for the week of Sept. 5-12
1. 29581 - Nichols and Ketchuptown area
The 29581 ZIP code has the highest rate of new COVID-19 cases, with around nine cases per 1,000 residents. In The Sun News’ count from two weeks ago, the area had one of the lowest incidence rates in the county with around 5.3 cases.
2. 29569 - Loris area
In Loris, around 8.8 cases per 1,000 residents were reported in the time period from Sept. 5 through Sept. 12. The 29569 ZIP code reported 153 COVID-19 cases during the referenced time period, up slightly from 143 during the last count.
3. 29579 - Carolina Forest area
One of the county’s largest ZIP codes by population, the 29579 ZIP code covering the Carolina Forest area had the third-highest incidence rate with around 8.6 cases per 1,000 residents. The area recorded 370 cases during the week of Sept. 5 through Sept. 12.
4. 29511 - Aynor area
In Aynor, the incidence rate dipped just below Carolina Forest at around 8.4 cases per 1,000 residents. It’s an improvement from the last count, when Aynor was the second-highest ZIP code for new cases.
5. 29544 - Galivants Ferry area
The 29544 ZIP code in the Galivants Ferry area of the county reported 42 new cases, calculating to around 8.2 new COVID-19 cases per 1,000 residents. The area saw the highest incidence rate in the county during the end of August, with around 19 cases per 1,000 residents.
6. 29527 - Conway, Bucksport and Bucksville area
Near Conway, Bucksport and Bucksville, the 29527 ZIP code recorded 200 new cases, coming out to around 7.5 cases per 1,000 residents. The vaccination rate in this ZIP code ranked 12th out of 16 in the county last month, with around 35% of its residents inoculated.
7. 29526 - Conway and Red Hill area
In neighboring 29526 ZIP code, around 7.2 cases per 1,000 residents were reported, with 346 cases total during the week of Sept. 5 through Sept. 12.
8. 29577 - Myrtle Beach area
One of the ZIP codes that covers the city of Myrtle Beach, 29577 fell in the middle of the pack for vaccinations and rate of COVID-19 cases. The area recorded around 6.2 cases per 1,000 residents in early September.
9. 29588 - Socastee and Forestbrook area
Socastee and Forestbrook’s ZIP code, 29588, logged 272 COVID-19 cases in the time period in question. The incidence rate is calculated at around 5.6 cases per 1,000 residents.
10. 29566 - Little River area
In Little River, where the third-highest vaccination rate was recorded last month, the incidence rate during the week of Sept. 5 was 5.3 cases per 1,000 residents, with 93 cases logged total.
11. 29572 - Myrtle Beach area
The area with the highest vaccination rate in Horry County is 29572, and the area ranks 11th for its incidence rate during the week of Sept. 5. The area added 49 cases to its count, meaning its incidence rate was around 5 cases per 1,000 residents.
12. 29545 - Green Sea area
The county’s smallest ZIP code by population only added eight COVID-19 cases to its count Sept. 5 through Sept. 12. That means the area saw a rate of around 4.9 cases per 1,000 residents. It also has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the county, with around 32% of its residents vaccinated.
13. 29568 - Longs area
During the referenced time period, 72 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the 29568 ZIP code, coming out to an incidence rate of around 4.4 cases per 1,000 residents.
14. 29582 - North Myrtle Beach area
The North Myrtle Beach area has one of the highest vaccination rates in the county at around 75% of people vaccinated. Its incidence rate during the week of Sept. 5 ranks 14th in the county, logging around 3.8 cases per 1,000 residents.
15. 29575 - Surfside Beach and Garden City area
On the southern end of the county, the incidence rates are some of the best in the area. Near Surfside Beach and Garden City, around 3.7 cases per 1,000 residents were added to the count in the second week of September.
16. 29576 - Murrells Inlet and Garden City area
With 92 cases, the 29576 ZIP code had the best incidence rate in the county during the week of Sept. 5. The area had around 50% of its residents vaccinated and a rate of around 2.8 cases per 1,000 residents.
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Correction: This story has been corrected to show the COVID-19 ZIP code data is from Sept. 5-12, not Aug 21- 28.
This story was originally published September 15, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
