ST. GEORGE — Southern Utah had it’s fifth-highest day for new infections and the most in one day since July according to the Utah Department of Health.
mbz-photodesign, iStock/Getty Images Plus; Infographic by Chris Reed, St. George News | Click to enlarge
There were 70 new cases in the five-county area reported on Saturday. The last time there were 70 or more new cases in one day was on July 24.
Based on sewage monitoring and data for the Utah Department of Health, the current spike in Washington County may be the first one that does not have St. George as a focal point. The bigger increases are in Hurricane, including the largest among the five long-term care centers outbreaks in the area at Hurricane Health and Rehabilitation.
The Southwest Utah Public Health Department did not release on Saturday any additional breakdown by county, though Washington County has had a large majority of the infections in the five-county area.
Vaccine dress rehearsals continue
The Southwest Utah Public Health Department will be continuing its annual flu vaccine “shootouts” in Garfield, Kane and Beaver counties. Shootouts have already been held in Washington and Iron counties.
Department spokesperson David Heaton has previously mentioned that this year’s shootout has two purposes: To do a dry run for how a COVID-19 vaccine would be mass distributed while making sure that local hospitals are not dealing with an influx of influenza patients at the same time as a spike in coronavirus cases.
The Southwest Utah Public Health Department will hold the following Flu Shootout events:
- Beaver County: Wednesday, noon to 4 p.m. at Beaver EMS Shed (1100 N. Main).
- Kane County: Oct. 10, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Kanab Fire Station (601 S. 100 East) – free for all Kane County Residents.
- Garfield County: Thursday, 1-4 p.m. at Ruby’s Inn (26 S. Main in Bryce Canyon City) and Oct. 15, noon to 4 p.m. at Panguitch EMS Shed (40 N. 100 East).
“We don’t want a serious flu season to overlap. Part of controlling COVID-19 is to also be immunized against the flu,” Heaton said. “The flu vaccine has been around a long time and it’s been proven.”
During his Thursday press conference, Gov. Gary Herbert said he was encouraged in meetings with officials in Washington D.C. earlier in the week that a COVID-19 vaccine is not far away.
“It’s not a matter of if, but a matter of when,” Herbert said. “Until that happens, we have to continue our best efforts going forward.”
COVID-19 information resources
St. George News has made every effort to ensure the information in this story is accurate at the time it was written. However, as the situation and science surrounding the coronavirus continues to evolve, it’s possible that some data has changed.
We invite you to check the resources below for up-to-date information and resources.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- World Health Organization
- Utah Department of Health
- Información sobre coronavirus en español
- Intermountain Healthcare
- To Donate and Volunteer to Help
Southern Utah coronavirus count (as of Oct. 4, 2020, seven-day average in parentheses)
Positive COVID-19 tests: 4,478 (40.7 new infections per day in seven days, rising)
- Washington County: 3,511 (31.2 per day, rising)
- Iron County: 789 (7.1 per day, rising)
- Kane County: 85 (1.3 per day, droppng)
- Garfield County: 51 (0.4 per day, rising)
- Beaver County: 42 (0.6 per day, steady)
Deaths: 35 (0.4 per day, stready)
- Washington County: 29
- Iron County: 3
- Garfield County: 2
- Kane County: 1
Hospitalized: 6 (rising)
Recovered: 3,799
Current Utah seven-day average: 951 (rising)
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