Three more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Dare County, all of them local residents who are symptomatic and in home isolation, according to the county’s Dept. of Health and Human Services’ dashboard. One person is a teenager.
The total number of COVID-19 cases reported in Dare County since the pandemic began is now 42. Twenty of those cases have been diagnosed in the past month.
The three new cases vary considerably in age: One person is 17; one is between the ages of 25 and 49; and the third is age 65 or older. Two are female, and one is a male.
Since June 12, 10 new COVID-19 cases have been diagnosed in Dare County. Five are residents, and five are non-residents. All of the five residents, including today’s three, are symptomatic and recovering in home isolation, according to a Dare County COVID-19 case update posted online today.
Four of the five resident cases are “connected,” according to the update, “and it is believed one individual acquired the virus by community spread” and spread it to three “family members/close contacts.”
The fifth COVID-19-positive resident is also believed to have acquired the virus through community spread because the DCDHHS has not been able to determine another source.
Of the five non-residents, one is symptomatic, and the other four are asymptomatic. Three of the asymptomatic cases share a “common household and acquired the virus through direct contact,” the update states.
The other two non-resident cases are not connected: One of them “acquired the virus by direct contact outside of the area,” according to the update, and the other “likely acquired the virus by community spread outside of Dare County.”
All of the non-residents have returned to their home counties.
DCDHHS has not found a connection between the residents and the non-residents.
Health department staff has done contact tracing on nine of the cases and notified all of their direct contacts. The 10th individual is not cooperating with “the contact tracers at this point,” according to the update.
“Direct contacts” are people whom the COVID-19-positive person identifies as coming within six feet or less of him or her for 10 minutes or longer.
If a COVID-19-positive person identifies someone associated with a business, restaurant, or other establishment as a “direct contact,” but does not know this contact’s name or how to get in touch with the contact, “DHHS staff works with that place of business to identify the individual and obtain contact information.”
When contact-tracing a non-resident, the update explains, “DHHS staff identifies any contacts the individual had while . . . in Dare County during [a] contagion window.”
The DHHS reportedly monitors all positive cases daily throughout their isolation period.
NEXT TESTING EVENT WILL BE JUNE 30
The DCDHHS is “finalizing” plans with Mako Medical Laboratories of Raleigh for a community testing clinic to do both diagnostic and antibody testing of COVID-19 on June 30.
The antibody testing requires a blood draw, not just a finger stick, and will be held indoors at the Dare County Parks and Recreation facility in Kill Devil Hills.
Details about appointment scheduling and costs will be released at the end of this week.
Ann G. Sjoerdsma, 6/16/20
The Southern Shores Beacon 