By Jim Hulen, NorthMyrtleBeachOnline.com

North Myrtle Beach, SC May 7, 2008—Robert Edge was first elected as Horry County Coroner in 1988, taking office in 1989.  That year is also noted by residents and tourists as when Hurricane Hugo came to visit.
 
Edge remarked, “That was a hectic year.  Lots of property damage but no deaths due to Hurricane Hugo.  This community had been very fortunate, as no deaths have ever occurred in the past twenty years due to a hurricane.”

The County Coroner's main job is to investigate all unexplained or unattended deaths, including homicides, suicides and accidents. The coroner, who serves a four-year term, also signs death certificates and determines the time, cause and manner of death. In Horry County, the coroner also issues burial transport permits and cremation permits.

When Edge was first elected, Horry County had 144,000 residents and the coroner’s office handled 426 calls (about 3 per 1000 residents) in that year. Now, Horry County boast a population estimated to be over 250,000 people and the coroner’s office handled 1204 calls (5 per 1000 residents) in 2007 –almost 70% increase in calls per 1000 residents.

Explaining, Edge said, “The increase is driven by several factors: population expansion, tourism growth and changing demographics. In 1989, autopsies were conducted on people dying as a result mostly of heart attacks, homicides, suicides and car accidents.  Now with the growth in tourism and more young people coming to the beach, we see more deaths due to overdoses, drug problems and additional homicides and suicides related to drugs.  That is where the big increase has come from. Unfortunately, about 1/3 of the calls involve visitors.”

The changing profile of the types of calls also drives the amount of staff needed to attend to each case. It takes about ten to twelve times as much staff time to process a homicide or suicide than other types of calls.

The Horry County Coroner’s office also has not escaped the rapidly increasing medical costs. Since there are not enough autopsies required to justify a full time medical doctor, the Coroner’s of