FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Dec. 11, 2023

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) confirmed that a raccoon found near Irongate and Woodgate drives in Columbia, S.C. has tested positive for rabies. No people or pets are known to have been exposed at this time.

The raccoon was submitted to DHEC's laboratory for testing on December 7, 2023, and was confirmed to have rabies on December 8, 2023. If you believe you, someone you know or your pets have come in contact with this raccoon, or another animal that potentially has rabies, please call DHEC's Public Health Columbia office at (803) 896-0620 during normal business hours (8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday) or after hours and on holidays at (888) 847-0902 (Select Option 2).

“To reduce the risk of getting rabies, always give wild and stray animals plenty of space,” said Terri McCollister, Rabies Program director. “If you see an animal in need, avoid touching it and contact someone trained in handling animals, such as your local animal control officer, wildlife control operator or wildlife rehabilitator.”

An exposure is defined as direct contact (such as through broken skin or mucous membranes in the eyes, nose or mouth) with saliva or brain/nervous system tissue from an infected animal. If your pet is found with wounds of unknown origin, please consider that your pet may have been exposed to rabies.

It is important to keep pets up to date on their rabies vaccination, which is one of the easiest and most effective ways to protect against the disease. This raccoon is the fifth animal in Richland County to test positive for rabies in 2023. There have been 77 cases of rabid animals statewide this year. Since 2002, South Carolina has averaged approximately 148 positive cases a year. In 2022, five of the 83 confirmed rabies cases in South Carolina were in Richland County.

Contact information for local Public Health offices is available at https://scdhec.gov/RabiesContacts. For more information on rabies visit scdhec.gov/rabies or cdc.gov/rabies.