LANCASTER COUNTY, S.C. — For months the small staff at the Lancaster County coroner’s office has managed to make due even with COVID-19-related deaths continuing to rise.
But now they’re experiencing even more setbacks and hoping for some much-needed assistance.
“Unfortunately this week with that small team I’ve had-- three of them go down with Covid,” Lancaster County coroner Karla Deese said.
She said as a result that’s left the rest of her staff feeling overworked and overwhelmed.
“It was a struggle to give everybody a rest,” Deese said. “You spend more days of the week at work than you do at home and it does get difficult to balance it.”
The coroner said they’ve already been approved for a new full-time deputy coroner position, but that won’t be the single solution to the COVID-19 death struggles. It’ll take several months to get the new hire trained and there’s also the question of how this new position will be funded on top of already piling overtime.
“Who’s going to pay for all those extra hours they’re putting in 7 days a week that they’re not budgeted for,” SC Representative Sandy McGarry said.
She represents District 44 in Lancaster County and said the COVID-19 coroner issues here are similar to others across the Palmetto State. Rep. McGarry hopes with the current support from Lancaster County council members there might also be additional funding help from the state level too.
“The question has been posed, we’re waiting for at least some direction,” Rep. McGarry said.
Another issue that has complicated the workflow is a new system by SCDHEC that funeral homes, hospitals, and the coroner’s office all say have been filled with glitches. The coroner is concerned these issues have negatively affected families who are unable to properly grieve and get closure.