With so many South Carolina students and staff in quarantine from measles exposures, and with recent Thanksgiving gatherings and travel, public health officials are expecting a big increase in the number of cases which have already reached 76 in the current outbreak, a state official said.

"This is alarming," state Epidemiologist Linda Bell said. It will also likely involve more than the four schools in Spartanburg County already affected, she said.

The state on Dec. 2 announced 14 new cases of measles, which is double from its previous update, and 134 people in quarantine after school exposures from three confirmed cases.

Although health officials suspected they might see an increase in cases because of exposure at Thanksgiving, “it's very unfortunate that we're seeing this ballooning

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