DHEC inspections rare amid coronavirus outbreak though Grand Strand restaurants are open
No restaurants across the Grand Strand had health inspections this month, though most food establishments remain open with limited services during the coronavirus pandemic, according to online health data.
The last Horry County food establishment was inspected March 23, according to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control’s online food grade database.
S.C. Governor Henry McMaster ordered all state restaurants to close dine-in services last month. Most restaurants in the Myrtle Beach area are offering to-go, curbside pick-up and delivery services.
A DHEC spokesperson said in an email, after denying a phone interview, that restaurant inspections are “reduced” due to the department’s ongoing response efforts to the coronavirus pandemic and the South Carolina governor’s order for social distancing and banning of dine-in eating.
An email exchange with DHEC also stated inspections are “reduced” because “not all facilities have remained open during this pandemic, however, we are staying in constant communication with the regulated retail food establishment community. The food safety checks are not mandatory and are currently being conducted upon request.”
DHEC’s last recorded visit to a Georgetown County restaurant was March 24 for a follow-up inspection, according to DHEC’s online data.
According to a recent DHEC release, the department is “utilizing a variety of video conferencing services, DHEC inspectors can virtually evaluate retail food operations at establishments around the state, allowing the agency to continue its food safety oversight while also protecting public health by adhering to social distancing measures.”
The release adds, “new technology to perform virtual preoperational inspections that will assist restaurant owners who may be in the process of opening a new restaurant during this unprecedented time.”
Records state that permits have been issued to about six Horry County restaurants, with the last issued April 3. An establishment in Georgetown County received a permit from DHEC on April 10.
DHEC conducts inspections — what it calls a “snapshot in time” of retail food establishments’ employee behavior and preparation practices — annually or quarterly depending on the establishment’s food processes and compliance history.
“As we are not able to be in facilities at all times during operating hours, each facility’s food protection manager is certified in food safety and is trained to understand these risk factors,” a spokesperson said in an email to The Sun News. “As always, the responsibility to ensure these risk factors are in check lies with the facility.”
