Of the known test results of the 178 people who were tested for COVID-19 at Dare County’s first drive-thru testing event this week, none is positive, according to a bulletin posted online today by the Dare County Dept. of Health and Human Services.
DCDHHS has received results on 171 of the 178 specimens obtained at the drive-thru event in Kill Devil Hills Tuesday and tested by Macko Medical Laboratories of Raleigh. Of those 171, 169 were determined to be negative, and two were rejected as invalid. The people whose tests were deemed invalid will be retested.
The other seven test results are expected to be available later today or tomorrow, according to the DCDHHS bulletin.
See the DCDHHS’s COVID-19 update at https://www.darenc.com/Home/Components/News/News/6304/1483
There are 363 appointments still available for the drive-thru COVID-testing event next Tuesday, June 2, starting at 10 a.m., at the Soundside Event Site in Nags Head. Because of the large number of unfilled appointments, DCDHHS is opening up the event to permanent residents of both Dare and Hyde counties who are age 10 and older.
To schedule an appointment, call (252) 475-5008.
The number of positive COVID-19 tests in Dare County has been 22 since May 14. The same two cases that have been active for more than two weeks remain active, according to DCDHHS’s bulletin. One of them continues to be hospitalized, and the other is still recovering in home isolation.
DCDHHS warns that, “Just because we have not had a positive test result since May 14, 2020 does not mean that COVID-19 is not in our area. It simply means that no one has tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.”
The County health department urges Dare residents to “make good choices” about their social behavior and to “understand that your choices can impact others.”
It reiterates that people who are a high risk of serious illness should continue to stay home and only travel for essential purposes; that mass gatherings should be restricted to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors (except for exempted gatherings that are protected by the First Amendment); and that people should observe social distancing of at least six feet.
Although people in North Carolina are not required to wear face masks or coverings, The Beacon believes that, at minimum, everyone who is in an enclosed space that is open to the public should wear one—as a matter of public health and safety, respect, and courtesy.
As everyone knows by now, COVID-19 can be transmitted by asymptomatic people, and a face covering can prevent the expulsion of infected droplets into the air that spread the virus. Such droplets can be expelled by an infected person sneezing, coughing, talking, or just breathing.
Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 5/29/20
The Southern Shores Beacon 