Upshur County reports nine new COVID-19 cases Friday, schools could close again next week

Brian Bergstrom
November 13, 2020

The number of COVID-19 cases in Upshur County continued to surge on Friday, with the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reporting nine new cases locally.

Statewide, the DHHR announced that 742 new cases of COVID-19 have been identified in the Mountain State. New cases were reported in Upshur (9) Barbour (3), Lewis (7), Randolph (11) and Webster (1) counties.

Eleven additional deaths have been attributed to the disease, according to the DHHR – an 82-year old male from Wayne County, a 65-year old male from Cabell County, a 73-year old male from Mercer County, a 69-year old female from McDowell County, a 91-year old male from Brooke County, a 65-year old female from Kanawha County, a 66-year old male from Hancock County, an 84-year old male from Ritchie County, a 61-year old female from Kanawha County, an 83-year old female from Barbour County, and a 95-year old female from Cabell County.

On the daily alert map Upshur County is red by infection rate but remains colored gold due to percent positivity. However, more than half the 36 cases recorded in the last four days are listed as probable, which means they are not included in the map’s positivity rating.

If just seven of those 19 probable cases are retroactively confirmed, the county would move to orange and schools will be closed for the upcoming week. Most probable cases are eventually confirmed.

Randolph and Barbour counties are both orange on the map and will also likely be closed next week. Lewis County has the highest infection rate of the four counties but is yellow since a large percentage of its cases are also classified as probable.

Here’s what was included in Friday’s DHHR update for Upshur County:

One probable case was removed and one confirmed case was added to Nov. 7
One probable case was removed and one confirmed case was added to Nov. 9
One probable case was removed from Nov. 10
One probable case was removed from Nov. 11
Seven probable and four confirmed cases were added to Nov. 12

The DHHR report is still several cases short of what the Upshur-Buckhannon Health Department is reporting. In a press release Thursday afternoon, the health department listed 350 total cases, while the DHHR is reporting 345.

According to the DHHR, 58 cases are active in Upshur County.

”The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources reports as of 10 a.m., November 13, 2020, there have been 898,730 total confirmatory laboratory results received for COVID-19, with 31,639 total cases and 565 deaths,” according to a press release.

Statewide, hospitalizations are surging at a record rate, increasing nearly 20 percent in just two days. Active cases are also at an all-time high, according to the DHHR.

About 8,531 West Virginia cases remain active, according DHHR data. Of the cases that are no longer active, 22,543 people have recovered and 565 have died. The daily percent positive was 4.06%.

CASES PER COUNTY: Barbour (249), Berkeley (2098), Boone (492), Braxton (91), Brooke (346), Cabell (2016), Calhoun (44), Clay (94), Doddridge (85), Fayette (923), Gilmer (169), Grant (222), Greenbrier (282), Hampshire (194), Hancock (332), Hardy (140), Harrison (828), Jackson (483), Jefferson (854), Kanawha (4456), Lewis (189), Lincoln (333), Logan (889), Marion (545), Marshall (693), Mason (226), McDowell (237), Mercer (990), Mineral (496), Mingo (805), Monongalia (2655), Monroe (288), Morgan (193), Nicholas (240), Ohio (924), Pendleton (80), Pleasants (54), Pocahontas (79), Preston (301), Putnam (1285), Raleigh (1074), Randolph (526), Ritchie (88), Roane (127), Summers (197), Taylor (200), Tucker (72), Tyler (98), Upshur (345), Wayne (743), Webster (44), Wetzel (306), Wirt (63), Wood (1375), Wyoming (481).