LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County’s Public Health officer has issued an update on COVID-19 cases and the effort to investigate their sources as the county moves into the fourth month of dealing with the pandemic.
On Thursday evening, Dr. Gary Pace said Lake County’s total COVID-19 cases had risen to 137 – a change of four over the previous day – with 36 cases active.
Pace said the case numbers continue to rise locally and throughout the state.
On Thursday night, there were more than 362,500 active cases and 7,480 deaths statewide, according to a tally of case totals published online by the state’s 58 county public health departments
Thursday night case totals for Lake’s neighboring counties were Colusa, 147; Glenn, 200; Mendocino, 177; Napa, 578; Sonoma, 2027; and Yolo, 1062.
“COVID-19 activity in Lake County, specifically, continues to be concerning, but the spread has been manageable, thus far,” Pace said.
Pace said that in Public Health’s contact investigations, key elements have emerged as significant sources of infections.
He said they have seen several cases where multiple people contracted COVID-19 at a social gathering with family and friends. During those events, people from multiple households interacted on a sustained basis.
“These types of events are very risky now that the virus is fairly widespread in the community,” Pace said.
If an individual who tests positive had close contact with another person – defined as within 6 feet for 15 minutes or more – Public Health is finding the second person's risk of becoming positive is much less when both people are wearing masks, Pace said.
Pace also reported that Public Health has observed that individuals who work in high public contact or social interaction environments are testing positive more frequently than other groups.
“We have not been able to confirm that they contracted the infection at work in all cases, but frequent social interaction and employment in front-line service industries appear to be strong risk factors,” Pace said.
Pace said when thinking about the risk associated with activities, “it is important to remember the strongest dividing line, from a public health and safety standpoint, is engaging in activities with people within your own household versus activities with people outside of your household.”
While people are tired of coping with the pandemic after four months, Pace said that cases are now increasing “and we are starting to enter a phase we have been worried about the whole time.”
He continued, “How destructive it will become really depends on our activity now as a community. We can find ways to continue to live our lives and enjoy the amazing natural beauty of Lake County, but do it in a safe way, where we limit risk to our neighbors, families and those vulnerable to severe complications.”
With cases rising, Public Health is particularly concerned about social gatherings where the COVID virus can spread quickly.
“Each time we document a positive case where the individual had recently been to a social gathering, there is risk we could be facing an outbreak,” he said.
Pace credited Public Health nurses, contact tracers, staff and clinical partners for doing “a truly outstanding job” of identifying potential pockets of spread early, and intervening with education and testing.
He said their insightful work has kept the exponential spread seen in other areas in the region and around the world at bay, but he added the community cannot grow complacent.
“Each spark of infection has the potential to grow, and the most severe outbreaks are fueled by simple things, like getting together in a home environment to mark achievements and family milestones without wearing face coverings,” Pace said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Public Health officer urges community not to become complacent as COVID-19 case numbers rise
- Elizabeth Larson
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