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The report comes a day after the county announced another COVID-19 death — the county's sixth to date — and another hospitalization.
With wildfires continuing to burn across the state and many evacuees seeking shelter locally in individual households or in hotels, campgrounds, RV parks and short-term rentals, Humboldt County Health Officer Teresa Frankovich reminded in a press release that gathering with people outside your household is inherently risky.
“As we offer our support to those in need of relief from wildfires, we should all keep COVID-19 precautions in mind," she said.
The current countywide case total stands at 479 and Humboldt remains in the “moderate” category under the state's new four-tiered system, with local numbers at about 3.9 cases per 100,000 residents and a positivity rate of 1.6 percent, putting it on the verge of being pushed into the “substantial” risk tier.
The state's "substantial" risk tier — which includes counties averaging between 4 and seven new cases a day per 100,000 residents or test positivity rates of 5 to 8 percent — brings tighter restrictions, including further limiting indoor restaurant and gym capacities and closing some "non-essential indoor business operations," like office. If the county were to move into the "substantial risk" tier, it would then need to record numbers in the "moderate" tier for 21 consecutive days before the state would loosen the added restrictions. The state's framework, which was updated today, was looking at county level data as of Sept. 5. Since then, Humboldt County has confirmed 70 new cases, or roughly 5.1 per 100,000 residents per day.
Statewide, the testing positivity rate sits at about 5.3 percent — slightly below the national rate of 5.5 percent — with an average of 9.1 new COVID-19 cases confirmed daily per 100,000 residents.
The six new cases reported today were confirmed after laboratories processed 200 samples, for a positivity rate of 3 percent.
To date, Humboldt County has seen 27 COVID-19 hospitalizations and six deaths. Nationally, more than 6.5 million cases have been confirmed with 194,092 fatalities, according to the Centers for Disease Control, including 760,013 cases and 14,451 deaths in California.
Basics of COVID-19
The California Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control, state that symptoms of novel coronavirus include cough and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, or at least two of the following: fever, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat or a new loss of taste or smell.
Emergency warning signs needing immediate medical attention include difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to awaken, and bluish lips or face.
In an emergency situation:
Call ahead to the emergency room or inform the 911 operator of the possibility of a COVID-19 infection and, if possible, put on a face mask.
Symptoms or possible exposure:
In the case of a possible exposure with symptoms — fever and cough or shortness of breath — contact your doctor’s office or the county Department of Health and Human Services, which has a hotline that can be reached during business hours at covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or at (707) 441-5000. Residents seeking medical advice or questions about testing are asked to contact Public Health at hhsphb@co.humbldt.ca.us or at (707) 445-6200.
St. Joseph Health has also set up a virtual assessment tool as an aid to assess risk factors for contracting the illness, which can be found at here.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has started a rumor-control webpage that can be found here.
For the Journal's latest COVID stories, updates and information resources, click here.
Read the county's release below.
The six new cases reported today were confirmed after laboratories processed 200 samples, for a positivity rate of 3 percent.
To date, Humboldt County has seen 27 COVID-19 hospitalizations and six deaths. Nationally, more than 6.5 million cases have been confirmed with 194,092 fatalities, according to the Centers for Disease Control, including 760,013 cases and 14,451 deaths in California.
Basics of COVID-19
The California Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control, state that symptoms of novel coronavirus include cough and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, or at least two of the following: fever, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat or a new loss of taste or smell.
Emergency warning signs needing immediate medical attention include difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to awaken, and bluish lips or face.
In an emergency situation:
Call ahead to the emergency room or inform the 911 operator of the possibility of a COVID-19 infection and, if possible, put on a face mask.
Symptoms or possible exposure:
In the case of a possible exposure with symptoms — fever and cough or shortness of breath — contact your doctor’s office or the county Department of Health and Human Services, which has a hotline that can be reached during business hours at covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or at (707) 441-5000. Residents seeking medical advice or questions about testing are asked to contact Public Health at hhsphb@co.humbldt.ca.us or at (707) 445-6200.
St. Joseph Health has also set up a virtual assessment tool as an aid to assess risk factors for contracting the illness, which can be found at here.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has started a rumor-control webpage that can be found here.
For the Journal's latest COVID stories, updates and information resources, click here.
Read the county's release below.
Sept. 15, 2020 - Six New Cases Reported Today
707-441-5000 ; covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us ; Monday-Friday 8am to 5pm Opens in new window
The total number of Humboldt County residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 now stands at 479, after six additional cases were reported today.
Wildfires continue to burn across the state, with many evacuees seeking shelter locally in individual households or in hotels, campgrounds, RV parks and short-term rentals. Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Teresa Frankovich said gathering with those outside of your household is inherently risky in the time of COVID. “As we offer our support to those in need of relief from wildfires, we should all keep COVID-19 precautions in mind.”
For a list of ways to provide shelter as safely as possible in Spanish, go to humboldtgov.org/DocumentCenter/View/89292. For English, visit humboldtgov.org/DocumentCenter/View/89261.
Today’s alert level stands at two or level yellow. Visit humboldtgov.org/dashboard to view the county’s Alert Level Assessment tool.
For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or during business hours by contacting covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or calling 707-441-5000.
Humboldt County COVID-19 Data Dashboard: humboldtgov.org/dashboard,
Follow us on Facebook: @HumCoCOVID19,
Instagram: @HumCoCOVID19,
Twitter: @HumCoCOVID19, and
Humboldt Health Alert: humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert
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