After shattering record high unemployment rates in September, Orangeburg and Calhoun counties saw rates fall slightly in October.

Orangeburg County’s October unemployment rate was 17.8 percent, down from September’s 18.4 percent record jobless rate, according to S.C. Employment Security Commission numbers released Friday.

September’s rate shattered the county’s previous record unemployment rate of 17.6 percent in June and was the highest since county-by-county record-keeping began 19 years ago.

Still, Orangeburg’s September unemployment rate was only the eighth highest among the state’s 46 counties.

Markus Wiggins, area director of the commission’s Orangeburg office, said the unemployment rate decrease for the month could be attributed to outdoor product manufacturer and Orangeburg’s largest manufacturer Husqvarna rehiring.

“Husquvarna is starting their lines again for the production of lawn mowers,” Wiggins said, explaining that normally in the summer months the company reduces production. Production is ramped up in the fall and into the winter months.

Wiggins hesitated to speculate on whether the rate decrease is typical for the area or could be a foretaste of things to come, noting the holidays are often a time when manufacturers shut down. That could negatively impact the rates and unemployment claims.

Calhoun County’s October unemployment rate was 13.1 percent. The rate decreased from 14.2 percent in September.

The Calhoun County 14.2 percent jobless rate was a record, breaking the previous high recorded in September 1996.

The unemployment rate ranked the county 24th in the state.

Bamberg County saw its unemployment rate fall to 17.8 percent from 17.9 percent in September. The rate tied Orangeburg County for eighth highest in the state.

Bamberg County’s unemployment rate hit a record high of 18.5 percent in June.

Elsewhere, rankings and unemployment rates in other counties for October were:

* 1st -- Allendale at 22.5 percent, unchanged.

* 6th -- Barnwell at 19.4 percent, up from 18.8 percent.

* 40th -- Dorchester at 10.3 percent, up from 10.2 percent.

* 46th -- Lexington at 8.6 percent, up from 8.3 percent.

Statewide, the jobless rate increased to 12.1 percent, up from 11.7 percent in September. It is the second consecutive month of an increase following two consecutive months of a rate decline.

The national unemployment rate was 10.2 percent, up from 9.8 percent in September.

“Going forward, our state faces significant challenges as it tries to replace the large number of jobs lost due to the recession that began in December 2007,” said Sam Foster, interim executive director of the commission.

The state’s job count increased by 1,100 in October, with most of the increases occurring in professional and business services. Partially offsetting the gains were losses in leisure and hospitality, manufacturing and construction.

The state’s overall job count was 60,500 below the year-ago level and nearly 95,000 below the December 2007 level when the recession began.

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