Area records 67 new cases, one death

Wise County reported 61 new COVID-19 cases between last Thursday and yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

As of yesterday, the county had reported a total of 5,241 cases since spring 2020, compared to 5,180 cases as of Thursday.

There were 228 county residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.
The county’s total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 increased by one, from 127 to 128.

The health department’s cumulative positive case count for Norton increased by six between last Thursday and yesterday, from 558 to 564.

There were 28 city residents hospitalized with COVID as of yesterday.

The number of total deaths in the city remained at 13.

In Virginia, the total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began rose from 679,262 Thursday to 683,159 yesterday, an increase of 3,897. The number of “probable” cases rose from 233,838 Thursday to 235,541 yesterday, an increase of 1,703.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Virginia increased by 81 to 11,542. The number of probable COVID-19 deaths increased by 40 to 2,203.

To look at the health department’s data, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov and go to the COVID-19 Data and Resources section.

VACCINATION RATES

As of yesterday, almost 50 percent of Wise County residents and 57 percent of Norton residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to health department statistics.

About 42 percent of county residents and about 47 percent of Norton residents are fully vaccinated.

Gov. Ralph Northam announced in mid-August that 73 percent of Virginians 18 and older had received at least one dose.

Guidance from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention specifies that those who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated should continue to wear masks, practice physical distancing and avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.