COLUMBIA — If each state in the U.S. were their own country, South Carolina would be third in the world for the most confirmed COVID-19 cases in the past week, according to data compiled by the New York Times.
According to the newspaper’s research, there is no country in the world where confirmed cases are growing as rapidly as they are in the U.S. Sunbelt.
In front of South Carolina, Arizona and Florida hold the No. 1 and No. 2 spots.
The New York Times used data from Johns Hopkins University as well as information that was released by state and local agencies during the week of June 28 to July 4. Then, the information was broken down by cases per one million residents.
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The countries of Bahrain, Qatar and Oman in the Middle East held top spots at No. 4, No. 6 and No. 7 respectively, while Louisiana filled in the fifth spot.
The United States dominated the list with states filling 15 slots out of 25. North Carolina was ranked 25th in the world.
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On Saturday, South Carolina hit a record-high number of cases with 2,239 new COVID-19 cases as well as the highest percent positive to date at 22.2 percent.
It also reported the state’s first coronavirus death in a child under the age of 5 in Chester County.