The COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Utah: A look back

In a file photo, hands hold that of St. George Police Officer Adam Ashworth in the intensive care unit at St. George Regional Hospital on an unspecified date. Ashworth was one of more than 650 people who died in Southern Utah of COVID-19 during the pandemic. | Photo courtesy of Angela Furin, St. George News

FEATURE — At least as far as the Utah Department of Health is concerned, the COVID-19 pandemic is over, and the COVID-19 endemic has begun.

In a file photo, Heather Anderson, a nurse in the intensive care unit of what is now St. George Regional Hospital, dons her protective gear as she prepares to go in and take care of a COVID-19 patient. St. George, Utah. Oct. 29, 2020. | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Healthcare, St. George News

On Thursday, the state ended its COVID-19 emergency, moving to a “steady state” where it is expected the disease will see occasional surges but not the kind seen in the last two years.

After the first infections and death in Southern Utah came in March 2020, around 53% of people in the five-county area have since had COVID, more than 3,000 locals went to the hospital with it and about 650 people died.

During the worst of the pandemic, St. George Regional Hospital was filled beyond capacity and COVID-19 became the second-leading cause of death in Southern Utah just behind heart disease and ahead of cancer. Only the 1918 influenza pandemic could rival the COVID-19 pandemic, though Southern Utah is a much different and more populous place than it was nearly 100 years ago.

As a way of preserving history, or just to look back at how much the pandemic changed the community and its people, St. George News, which has covered the pandemic locally since its very beginning more than two years ago, looks back at the pandemic through links and sections of previous stories, as well as a running tally of the number of people infected and the lives lost.

Jan. 26, 2020: The first time COVID-19 or the coronavirus is mentioned in St. George News is a story about the first cases of a new virus taking place in the nearby states of Arizona and California.

In a file photo, members of a World Health Organization team are seen through a window wearing protective gear during a field visit to the Hubei Animal Disease Control and Prevention Center, Wuhan, China, Feb. 2, 2021 | Photo by Ng Han Guan/Associated Press, St. George News

The virus can cause fever, coughing, wheezing and pneumonia. It is a member of the coronavirus family that’s a close cousin to the deadly SARS and MERS viruses that have caused outbreaks in the past.

Dozens of people have died from the virus in China, which has issued massive travel bans in hard-hit sections of that country to try to stem spread of the virus. The U.S. consulate in Wuhan announced that it would evacuate its personnel and some private citizens aboard a charter flight.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 0
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 0
Number of cases in U.S.: 5
Number of deaths in U.S.: 0

February 15, 2020: Jerri Jorgensen becomes the first resident of Southern Utah to be infected with the coronavirus, though she was infected aboard the cruise ship Diamond Princess during a cruise through Asia.

She would be kept in a quarantined room in Yokohama, Japan, for another 14 days before being cleared of the virus and returning home to St. George on March 2, the same day the Centers for Disease Control reported the first death in the United States from the new virus.

Her husband Mark Jorgensen was also infected on the ship, though his diagnosis came while being kept in quarantine at a California airbase. Mark was then transported to the Emergency Preparedness Unit of Intermountain Medical Center in Murray to become the first person to be treated for the virus within the state.

Both of the Jorgensens never developed symptoms other than a fever for Jerri when she was first diagnosed.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 0
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 0
Number of cases in U.S.: 15
Number of deaths in U.S.: 0

March 12, 2020: The pandemic became real to most Utahns when the Utah Jazz were unable to take to the court after Rudy Gobert was diagnosed with COVID-19 and the NBA season was suspended, Gov. Gary Herbert takes what he said were proactive measures to “get ahead of the virus” that at that point had infected five in the state, though none of those measures are mandatory.

Basketball fans react after it is announced that an NBA basketball game between Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz in Oklahoma City has been postponed, Wednesday, March 11, 2020 | Associated Press photo by Kyle Phillips, St. George News

Herbert said gatherings of 100 people or more in the state were recommended to be avoided, and those aged 60 and over were recommended to avoid any gatherings of more than 20 people.

During a press conference, Herbert echoed what most public officials are saying in regard to social interaction restrictions: They are in place to get ahead of the spread of the virus in a state that has yet to see a case.

We are hoping for the best, preparing for the worst. I’ve not come to these decisions lightly. This is seeing what has happened in the last week with science. We’re trying to be proactive to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 0
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 0
Number of cases in U.S.: 1,645
Number of deaths in U.S.: 41

March 21, 2020: The Southwest Utah Public Health Department confirmed the first case of a person being diagnosed in Southern Utah with a positive test of the COVID-19 coronavirus. As would be the case for all of those diagnosed with the virus, only their county of residence – Washington County – was disclosed. 

Southwest Utah Public Health Department spokesperson David Heaton said efforts throughout the state, and specifically Southern Utah, to socially isolate and avoid groups of 10 or more have played a role in seeing a large, exponential burst of cases. But Heaton added that the first positive case from a test made specifically in Southern Utah shows the efforts need to continue.

We certainly expect to see more cases diagnosed positive in our area based on the activity but we hope by people following the public health order we can reduce those. We’re certainly not out of the woods.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 1
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 0
Number of cases in U.S.: 23,649
Number of deaths in U.S.: 302

March 27, 2020: The Southwest Utah Public Health Department has reported the first death of a Southern Utah resident related to COVID-19: An Iron County woman, an older adult under the age of 60, died while receiving treatment in a Salt Lake City-area hospital.

The “Stay Safe to Stay Open” signage designed for businesses that pledge to adhere to state coronavirus guidelines. | Photo courtesy stayopenutah.com, St. George News

The day also saw another first: the first Southern Utah resident to have been declared free of the virus after being infected.

Later in the day, Gov. Gary Herbert issued recommendations for all Utahns to stay home for two weeks and recommended restaurants limit themselves to delivery and takeout.

The “Stay Safe, Stay Home” directive falls short of a mandatory, statewide shelter-in-place order like that which has been enacted in places like California and New York, but Herbert said the message of the directive is that at this point, everyone in Utah should stay home unless they have essential needs to leave it.

All individuals should stay home as much as possible. We should be looking at what we can do to stay home, rather than being out. This is something we expect all Utahns to do. It will only work if we all do this. All of us are in this together.

The governor would later make the restaurant recommendation an order and, on April 17, extend the recommendations to stay home while adding a red-orange-green color system to indicate the risk level, with the entire state starting in the red.

Also on March 27, the United States passed China for the most number of cases in the world, a spot the U.S. has occupied since.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 10
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 1
Number of cases in U.S.: 101,242
Number of deaths in U.S.: 1,500

April 16, 2020: In the first sign of local criticism of COVID-19 prevention efforts, over 200 people gathered outside the Washington County Administrative Building in St. George to protest coronavirus prompted restrictions set up throughout the state they claim are impeding their constitutionally-protected rights and doing more harm than good.

There were individuals among the crowd that wore masks and practiced social distancing by remaining 6 feet apart, while others clustered in small groups and stood right next to each other.

Organizer Larry Meyers said protest attendees were encouraged to observe the state directive against standing too close to others and not being in gatherings of over 10 people. When asked about some clusters of people not observing those directives, Meyers said, “The thing is, you can’t control freedom.”

At the “Walk for Freedom” in St. George protesting coronavirus-caused closures and restrictions protesters claim are impeding constitutionally-protected freedoms, St. George, Utah, April 15, 2020 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

Also on April 16, the death toll from COVID-19 in the U.S. moved past Italy for the highest in the world. No country has surpassed it since.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 63
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 1
Number of cases in U.S.: 604,070
Number of deaths in U.S.: 31,002

April 30, 2020: Wearing an orange tie to mark the occasion, Gov. Gary Herbert signed an official order for Utah to end the red risk level for the virus and move to orange, effectively ending the stay home recommendations and allowing restaurants to allow inside dining again and for gyms to reopen. 

While he maintains optimism that a majority of Utahns will continue social distancing and taking precautions, Herbert cautioned that it is not time for a return to normal. And as easily as the state moves to a lower risk level, a substantial increase in cases and other signs people have become careless with social distancing could erase that progress and put the state right back on a red alert footing. 

A day later, seemingly coming out of the stay home recommendations slumber, hundreds gathered under Dixie Rock along Red Hills Parkway and other areas of St. George to see an Air Force flyover designed as a salute to health care workers in the state.

At the same time, the U.S. passed the million mark for the number of those that had been infected by the virus.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 98
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 2
Number of cases in U.S.: 1,003,974
Number of deaths in U.S.: 52,428

May 20, 2020: The first surge of the pandemic arrived in Southern Utah – especially in Washington County where cases went up 50% in a week. However, a spokesperson for the health agency that oversees Southern Utah said at the time there was no cause for alarm.

Medical personnel administer COVID-19 tests at the Intermountain drive-thru coronavirus testing site at the 400 East Campus of Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George, Utah, on May 30, 2020. | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

David Heaton, spokesperson for the Southwest Utah Public Health Department, said the increase in cases is not as important an indicator of where the fight is against the virus. He added there is no reason for anyone to be panicked over the increasing number of those with the virus in the area.  

“We’re not any more alarmed or concerned than we have been. There have been no nursing home outbreaks and we have not been able to identify any clusters,” Heaton said. “We’re concerned about any case we have, but the hospital curve is more important for us. Most cases here don’t involve hospitalization. It’s a reflection of the robust testing efforts.”

The surge came a week after Gov. Gary Herbert opened up more of the state by moving much of it to the yellow risk level. That followed two failed attempts by Southern Utah leaders to have the risk level lowered in the area.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 260
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 4
Number of cases in U.S.: 1.4 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 89,271

June 20, 2020: As recorded cases of COVID-19 in Southern Utah crossed the 1,000 mark, some Washington County officials began a push to have the state’s color-coded coronavirus restrictions changed or lifted so life can begin to “get back to normal.”

“I think its time to get back to normal,” Washington County Commissioner Victor Iverson said Saturday. “Our citizens want to be free. And we’re done. We’re just done with whatever color they want to put up. We want to go back to red, white and blue. Let us worry about our health.”

Iverson added he “will never wear a mask” and reiterated previous calls for the state government to leave COVID-19 related decision making and policy in the hands of local health departments rather than “an un-elected bureaucrat” in Salt Lake City.

Iverson’s comments drew criticism from Gov. Gary Herbert, who ended up enacting the state’s first mask mandate four days later, requiring them to be worn in all state buildings.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 1,031
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 9
Number of cases in U.S.: 2.2 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 118,205

July 9, 2020: Gov. Gary Herbert announced that masks will be mandated for all students, faculty, staff and visitors to K-12 schools in the state as a requirement for returning to in-person instruction.

A sign requiring face masks seen at the entrance to Snow Canyon High School on May 7, 2020. St. George, Utah | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

He stopped short of mandating masks for the public at large or moving the coronavirus risk level back to orange, challenging Utahns to wear masks and practice social distancing on their own by the beginning of August or face further action that could include a mask mandate and a closing down of some businesses.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 1,881
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 15
Number of cases in U.S.: 2.9 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 133,195

August 21, 2020: Hundreds of Southern Utah residents attended a rally in front of the Washington County School District offices to protest Gov. Gary Herbert’s mandatory mask mandate for schools.

Some in attendance started shouting and a few became aggressive, demanding entrance to the school district offices saying it was “their building” and that the rally was now going to be held inside.

Organizers and attendees, along with St. George Police Department personnel in attendance, quickly diffused the situation and the rally continued without further incident.

Rally attendee Dustin Cox, who spoke over the megaphone, encouraged district students in attendance to not wear a mask when they return to school, even if it means getting expelled.

“I was encouraging all of the students to not wear masks at all and encouraging them to meet with their principals if that’s what it takes, and to get expelled from school,” Cox said about his speech at the rally.

The protest gained national attention a month later when footage circulated on social media of one protester, who compared having to wear a mask to alleged murder victim George Floyd being heard saying “I can’t breathe.” The video ended up trending on Twitter and was also the subject of jokes on late night talk shows like Jimmy Kimmel.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 3,504
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 27
Number of cases in U.S.: 5.5 million
Number of deaths in U.S.:167,338

October 13, 2020: October saw a second, much larger surge start in Southern Utah that continued, to some extent, for the rest of the year.

The masks-required sign inside the west entrance of the Harmon’s grocery store in St. George, Utah, March 19, 2021 | Photo by Mori Kessler. St. George News

Gov. Gary Herbert issued an emergency declaration making the wearing of face coverings mandatory and restricting indoor social gatherings to 10 or less in Washington, Iron and Garfield counties.

The color-coded risk system was also abandoned in favor of a more data-driven COVID-19 Transmission Index that determines if a county has more restrictions like mask mandates based on how high the virus transmission level was there.

For the first time since the pandemic began, Southern Utah is averaging at least one death per day, according to the Southwest Utah Public Health Department. 

Earlier in the month, the virus reached the highest office in the land, as President Donald Trump was hospitalized with COVID-19.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 4,682
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 45
Number of cases in U.S.: 7.7 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 207,838

October 18, 2020: Dixie Regional Medical Center activated its contingency surge intensive care unit after it went over the 32-bed capacity of its ICU. The move came as Southern Utah deals with the continued rise in coronavirus hospitalizations and new infections in the area.

The surge ICU plan converts additional rooms into negative pressure ICU rooms that makes additional ICU beds available.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 5,504
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 47
Number of cases in U.S.: 7.9 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 211,637

November 8, 2020: Utah Gov. Gary Herbert ordered a statewide mask mandate and also ordered that households may not participate in or host social gatherings other than with people in their immediate households for the next two weeks. These moves are in response to an ongoing surge in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert seen in an address to all Utahns ordered a statewide mask mandate and prohibited social gatherings in households for the next two weeks, Nov. 8, 2020. | Photo courtesy of Utah Governor’s Office, St. George News

Herbert issued the state of emergency order through an emergency alert sent to mobile phones throughout the state at 9 p.m. and an address to the state 30 minutes later.

Our hospitals are full. This threatens patients who rely on hospital care from everything from COVID-19 to emergencies like heart attacks, strokes, surgeries and trauma,” Herbert said in the address. “(This) is not a shutdown of our society or our economy. We’re not closing any businesses … but the wearing of masks and exercising every precaution when it comes to gathering with others including social distancing is crucial.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 7,219
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 61
Number of cases in U.S.: 9.6 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 230,136

December 8, 2020: Dixie Regional Medical Center reached full capacity, according to the hospital’s medical director. 

The news came as Southern Utah reached 100 people who have died of the coronavirus.

A view inside one of the rooms in the intensive care unit inside Dixie Regional Medical Center as a nurse in COVID-19 protective gear treats a patient. December 2020, St. George, Utah. | Photo courtesy off Intermountain Healthcare, St. George News

Cedar City set a new one-day high for new infections and is now nearing the same number of new infections per day as St. George, despite having less than half the population.

Hospital medical director Dr. Patrick Carroll said the ICU has been regularly running around 150% capacity in the last few days. He added if the ICU goes above 200% capacity, the hospital will switch to crisis mode. 

Carroll said the ICU actually went down in population on Tuesday, but it wasn’t because of people being discharged.

“The census decreased because we had additional deaths,” Carroll said.

Meanwhile, nurses like ICU nurse Avery Broadbent will continue working extra 10-hour shifts, where she says she’s seeing patients die every day.

“We’ve had several couples come into the hospital and most of the time, only one comes out,” Broadbent said. “It’s awful because people have the power to prevent all of that. It’s all preventable. All of it.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 14,138
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 100
Number of cases in U.S.: 14.6 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 278,030

December 14, 2020: The first approved vaccines for COVID-19 arrive in Utah.

Photo from a video showing physical therapist Gail Rieffer becoming the first person in Southern Utah to receive a non-trial dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, at Dixie Regional Medical Center in St. George, Utah, Dec. 16, 2020 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Healthcare, St. George News

The first two shipments of two boxes each were unloaded at Utah Valley Hospital in Provo and LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City. Eventually, the first boxes arrived at Dixie Regional Medical Center and at other Southern Utah hospitals a week later.

By the start of the new year, all medical personnel at each of Southern Utah’s hospitals that wanted to have the first injection of the COVID-19 vaccine are expected to have had it.

As 2021 begins, the Southwest Utah Public Health Department is now starting vaccination clinics, starting with non-hospital medical workers locally and soon expanding to K-12 school teachers and staff, as well as first responders.

Dr. Eddie Stenehjem, an infectious diseases physician at Intermountain, said Monday was a pivotal day in the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed 117 people and infected nine of every 100 people in Southern Utah since March.

“Today signals the beginning of the end of this pandemic in Utah,” Stenehjem said. “We’ve looked under the hood … the data submitted to the FDA, and we feel this vaccine is safe and effective. I have no hesitation to personally being vaccinated.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 19,024
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 137
Number of cases in U.S.: 19.9 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 345,015

January 15, 2021: After being released for medical workers, first responders and educators, the first COVID-19 vaccines are rolled out to the first general population group: Those ages 70 and over. 

But like tickets for a big-name rock concert, all of the reservations put up by the Southwest Utah Public Health Department fill within an hour. The rollout of the vaccine locally proves to be a case of high demand, low supply. At the same time, the first anti-vaccination protests begin in Southern Utah, prompting a response from the executive director of the Southwest Utah Public Health Department, Dr. David Blodgett.

Blodgett said those people are entitled to their opinion, but defended the vaccine as the best hope to end the pandemic.

If I had that magic answer (to those against vaccines), I’d be making a lot more money than I do now,” Blodgett said. “The fact is, vaccination is the best solution, most cost-effective way we have to stop disease. The number one reason we have a longer life expectancy now is vaccines. We’re not dying of diseases like smallpox.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 22,355
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 176
Number of cases in U.S.: 23.7 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 398,917

February 25, 2021: With signs of COVID-19 infections waning and more people getting vaccinated, physical distancing of patrons at restaurants and businesses in Southern Utah and throughout the state is lifted.

Residents line up outside to receive a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine inside the St. George Active Life Center for the Southwest Utah Public Health Department’s COVID-19 second-dose vaccination clinic on April 6, 2021. St. George, Utah | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

At a press conference, Gov. Spencer Cox, innagurated the month before, predicts that by July 4, 2021, masks would no longer be required and COVID would mostly be an afterthought.

“I’m telling you. I’m not going to be wearing this on the 4th of July,” Cox said gesturing to his mask at his weekly COVID-19 press conference at the State Capitol in Salt Lake City. “And I’m going to be in a parade somewhere and we’re going to put them in fireworks or burn them. If I’m wrong, I’ll admit I’m wrong and we’ll adjust.” 

At the same conference, as the federal government boosts incoming vaccine supplies, Cox expands vaccine eligibility a week early to everyone with high-risk health conditions and comorbidities.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 26,601
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 224
Number of cases in U.S.: 28.5 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 509,410

March 25, 2021: For the first time, the COVID-19 vaccines become available to everyone ages 16 and over.

In the Utah State Legislature, criticism of the governor and the Utah Department of Health having too much power to put restrictions on residents and businesses results in a bill by Utah Sen. Evan Vickers of Cedar City that establishes limits on those powers.

Cox ultimately signs the bill which establishes that the governor and health department now must get the legislature’s approval to extend any public emergency beyond 30 days.

Vickers told St. George News that ultimately the bill is not moving the balance of power from the executive to the legislative branch in regulations concerning the pandemic. He said it just gives the legislature a voice.

In another sign of government officials curtailing public health restrictions, the Kane County Commission unilaterally declares that the mask mandate is over in that county, despite the governor’s office declaring that is not the case.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 27,727
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 255
Number of cases in U.S.: 30.2 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 546,322

April 16, 2021: A few months after seeing the most patients at one time in the hospital’s history, St. George Regional Hospital, which changed its name from Dixie Regional Medical Center at the start of the year, reported having no COVID-19 patients in its intensive care unit.

A resident receives a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine inside the St. George Active Life Center for the Southwest Utah Public Health Department’s COVID-19 second-dose vaccination clinic on April 6, 2021. St. George, Utah | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

Earlier in the month, on April 9, 2021, with the legislature’s curtailing of the governor’s emergency powers going into effect, the state’s mask mandate ended. And later in the month, Cox struck an optimistic tone that the worst days of COVID-19 were behind Southern Utah.

“The truth is in places like Washington County, the virus doesn’t exist much,” Gov. Spencer Cox said Thursday in response to a question by St. George News during the monthly taping on PBS Utah’s Governor’s Monthly News Conference. “This is a good sign that normality is coming back.”

By the end of the month, however, public health officials announced the first detection of a new variant of COVID-19 that they said could cause worse illness: The delta variant.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 28,332
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 263
Number of cases in U.S.: 31.6 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 564,566

May 13, 2021: A few days after the Washington County School District unilaterally decided to no longer enforce the state’s mask mandate for schools, Cox announced that Utah is lifting that mandate for the rest of the state’s school districts for the last week of their school years.

The move coincided with the COVID-19 vaccine becoming available for children ages 12 and up. There was also pressure from a new lobbying group, Utah Parents United, that began showing up to school board meetings throughout the state calling for the end to the mandate. Southern Utah resident, Harmony Vanderhorst, helped to spearhead the group

“We just want a choice for our child whether it is to wear a mask or not. I am for choice,” Vanderhorst said, adding that she feels the same way about vaccines, that it should be left to people’s choice, rather than them being mandated. “There is too much scientific data each way to decide what’s good for everyone.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 28,332
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 263
Number of cases in U.S.: 32.9 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 583,790

June 10, 2021: While not officially declaring the pandemic over, Blodgett, the head of Southern Utah’s health district said COVID-19 has now entered a new phase where it is just another of the many respiratory diseases people live with.

Southwest Utah Public Health Department Director Dr. David Blodgett listens in to members of the Southwest Utah Public Health Board during their meeting at the department’s Beaver, Utah office. June 10, 2021 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

Blodgett said that current infections are at a plateau that is “going to continue indefinitely” with an occasional slight rise that will still never be more than a fraction of the largest surge that was seen last November and December.

“I think we’re in a phase where we need to start talking about it as part of the diseases we see on a regular basis and kind of treat it that way. It will be part of the infectious, upper respiratory tract infections that we see here,” Blodgett said. “I really think we will see this COVID virus or the coronavirus looking much more like other coronaviruses as we go forward. ”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 29,408
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 275
Number of cases in U.S.: 33.5 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 598,331

July 22, 2021: With an explosion of the delta variant, Southern Utah sees daily infections hit into the triple-digits again, and the area sees the demographics of those being hospitalized and dying of the disease starting to move younger.

Health officials attribute it to not only the delta variant, but that a large majority of younger Southern Utahns were not being vaccinated against the virus.

That includes one of the more high-profile local COVID deaths of the pandemic when 39-year-old St. George Police officer and father of three Adam Ashworth dies of the disease.

“Adam and I weren’t getting the vaccine. We’ve never gotten flu vaccines,” Bobbi Anne Ashworth told St. George News. “Our family’s never in the hospital, never sick. We were trying to be a little precautious. We didn’t ever think that it would hit our home.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 31,272
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 289
Number of cases in U.S.: 34.4 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 608,507

August 31, 2021: For the first time since before the vaccine was introduced, St. George Regional Hospital sees its ICU become full, with more than 90% of it being COVID patients.

A second overflow ICU is once again set up and will remain until February 2022.

Saying that hospitals in Utah are in a “dire situation,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox announces that he will be negotiating with the state Legislature on new measures to combat a surge in COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the majority leader of the Utah Senate, Sen. Evan Vickers of Cedar City, told St. George News that he and the rest of the Legislature are willing to work with the governor.

Ultimately, those actions don’t consist of new legislation but do include a policy where schools would be forced to enact a “test-to-stay” program. If a certain threshold of COVID infections takes place. all students and staff must test negative for COVID-19 in order to return to school. 

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 33,584
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 303
Number of cases in U.S.: 39.4 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 640,895

September 23, 2021: According to the Utah Department of Health, Southern Utah begins to set new records for COVID-19 deaths on a weekly basis.

Sen. Evan Vickers introduces Gov. Spencer Cox during the interfaith community prayer gathering in Main Street Park, Cedar City, Utah, Sept. 23, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Infections were also on the rise and that included Vickers, who had to carry around an oxygen tank for a bit but credited the vaccine with keeping him from getting sicker.

“My wife and I can attest firsthand that, because we were vaccinated, when we did test positive for COVID, the effects were greatly minimized over what they could have been,” Vickers, the Republican majority leader of the Utah Senate, told St. George News on Sunday. “I have had a lot of conversations with health care professionals about COVID.  The bottom line is that we need antibodies to fight off the effects of COVID.  The best way to get those antibodies is through a vaccination.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 37,240
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 351
Number of cases in U.S.: 42.7 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 685,562

October 22, 2021: After a drop in infections, though not in deaths and hospitalizations, Blodgett said during a Southwest Utah Public Health Department meeting that COVID-19 was “on the wane” and Southern Utah was nearing herd immunity. 

“This pandemic is on the wane,” Blodgett told the board. “Eighty percent is where we expected herd immunity, and I think we’re really close to that.”

As of Friday, according to the Utah Department of Health, a minority – 43.8% of Southern Utahns – are fully immunized. That number bumps up to 53% if those under 12, who currently do not qualify for the vaccine, are taken out of the total.

As the CDC approves the first COVID-19 vaccine booster shots, the Ivins/Santa Clara area became the first community in Southern Utah to exceed more than 50% who are fully vaccinated. The only other community locally to have exceeded 50% since is St. George, which moved past the threshold in February.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 40,281
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 388
Number of cases in U.S.: 45.8 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 737,332

November 3, 2021: With the aid of the U.S. Department of Defence, the Utah Department of Health opens a free monoclonal antibody infusion clinic at the original site in St. George of what is now known as St. George Regional Hospital.

Personnel from the U.S. Department of Defence train with Utah Department of Health officials to handle monoclonal antibody infusion equipment as part of the opening of a Utah Department of Health COVID-19 antibody clinic, St. George, Utah, Nov. 3, 2021 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

Like with the vaccine, the Utah Department of Health said that the clinic will be providing the antibody treatments free of charge. This is a big change from what locals have been seeing where monoclonal antibody treatments have potentially added thousands of dollars to their medical bills.

The clinic, at 544 S. 400 East, will have 10 bays and is expected to provide up to 50 Southern Utah residents per day with infusions of monoclonal antibodies.

Late in the month, however, a new variant appeared in South Africa that would prove to be resistant to many of those antibodies and spread COVID to record levels in Southern Utah.

Omicron was on its way.

Unlike the delta variant, which took months to get to Southern Utah, omicron reached Southern Utah just two weeks after it was discovered in Africa.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 41,408
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 411
Number of cases in U.S.: 45.8 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 751,925

December 30, 2021: In less than a month, omicron became the dominant form of COVID-19 in Southern Utah.

For the first time in the entire pandemic, the drive-thru  COVID testing site on Tech Ridge in St. George sees lines of more than 100 cars.

While the hospitals were below capacity for the first time in weeks by the end of the month, medical officials cautioned that the worst was to come.

“What is happening is omicron is pushing delta out,” Stenehjem said. “We’re at 70% omicron. Ten days ago, we were at 5-10%”

Local infections have jumped from about 80 per day to 189 in the last 48 hours, and statewide from about 1,000 to 3,500, according to the Utah Department of Health. Southern Utah infections are up 55.2% in the last week.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 46,547
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 497
Number of cases in U.S.: 54.3 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 827,167

January 20, 2022: According to the Utah Department of Health, Southern Utah hits the highest number of new COVID-19 infections for the entire pandemic — 722.

A line of cars extends next to Dixie Tech to the drive-thru COVID-19 testing site at Tech Ridge, wrapping around the Vasion building, St. George, Utah, Jan. 10, 2022 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

The month sees omicron cause so many new infections statewide that the governor encourages people to not get tested if they have symptoms and just assume they have COVID-19. Cox also ends the school test-to-stay policy under the reasoning that schools just can’t keep up with the number of students needing to be tested.

With hundreds of cars in line, the COVID testing site at Tech Ridge in St. George was forced to close early.

“We can back off the idea of catching the virus or not. We’re swimming in omicron right now,” Dr. Todd Vento said.

If there’s a saving grace for omicron, it proves to be less like to cause severe disease than previous variants.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 50,774
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 513
Number of cases in U.S.: 69.5 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 865,099

February 18, 2022: As omicron receded, what was left may have been the long-awaited herd immunity that had been hoped for with so many getting the virus along with those already vaccinated and boosted.

Gov. Spencer Cox with Hurricane Family Pharmacy owner Cliff Holt during the governor’s visit to the pharmacy, Hurricane, Utah, March 18, 2022 | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

With that, for the first time since the pandemic began COVID infections appeared to plateau nationwide. The CDC relaxed masking recommendations.

Locally, for the first time in half a year, St. George Regional Hospital was able to see its ICU fall below capacity.

At the State Capitol, Cox announced that as of March 31, the state would be moving to what he called a “steady state” on COVID response, remarking he didn’t like the term “endemic.”

“It is now time to transfer from an emergency posture to a cautious posture,” Cox said during a press conference at the State Capitol in Salt Lake City. “Let me be clear, this is not the end of COVID, but it is the beginning of treating COVID like other respiratory viruses.”

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 62,785
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 584
Number of cases in U.S.: 78.4 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 936,216

April 1, 2022: Utah enacts the steady-state protocol.

Free state-run testing sites, including that at Tech Ridge, shut down.

At least officially, the COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Utah is over.

Number of cases in Southern Utah: 63,424
Number of deaths in Southern Utah: 645
Number of cases in U.S.: 80.1 million
Number of deaths in U.S.: 978,648

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.

Check the resources below for up-to-date information and resources.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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