CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – Over the past three months, Horry County Police Department says there has been a decrease in the number of 911 calls and some crimes.
The department says it usually see an increase in calls starting around March, but since Governor Henry McMaster’s “home or work” order was issued in April, this hasn’t been the case this year.
Statistics show that March of this year and March 2019 had about the same amount of calls. However, this past April, the department received about 8,000 calls.
That is down by about 1,000 from April of 2019.
Mikayla Moskov, spokesperson for the department, says these changes are result of coronavirus keeping fewer people from being outside.
“It really has to do with the fact that so many things were closed,” she explains. “People were at home or they were at work and the places that were open were limited in number. When you see people moving around less you see the calls of service decrease.”
From January to March of this year, the department has also seen a decrease in criminal reports. Reported burglaries in Horry County nearly cut in half during that time frame.
Shoplifting reports slightly decreased from 93 in January to 72 in March. However, the department is expecting those numbers to increase as more businesses reopen.
“We are going to have things reopening over the next few months,” Moskov says. “We will do what we can to help keep everyone safe and we will always be here if anyone needs us.”
Gov. McMaster’s order was lifted starting Monday, May 4.
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