Page County reports 44 cases of COVID as positivity drops to 9.7%

Page County Map COVID Spread — Page Valley News will have continuing coverage of the Coronavirus' impact on Page County.

By Randy Arrington

LURAY, Nov. 1 — After a brief uptick in last week’s report, the past seven days have seen the Delta variant wave of the COVID-19 pandemic subsiding again in Page County. New cases are averaging just over six per day (after a recent height of more than 25 per day) and the positivity rate has dropped to below 10 percent for the first time since Aug. 11. However, with a dozen reported fatalities due to the virus, October proved to be the second-deadliest month of the pandemic in Page County.

The Virginia Department of Health has reported 44 cases of COVID-19 in Page County since Oct. 25, including 14 since Friday. According to zip code data provided by the VDH, the new cases surfacing over the last seven days were distributed throughout the county as follows:

• 21 cases — Luray area (22835);

• 11 cases — Shenandoah area (22849);

• 8 cases — Stanley area (22851);

• 2 cases — Rileyville area (22650).

Page County’s positivity rate has dropped to 9.7 percent as of Monday, after sitting at 14.5 percent one week ago and nearly 23 percent at the start of October.

Over the past week, Page County also reported two hospitalizations due to the virus and one death. The COVID-related fatality was reported on Friday, the county’s 77th death of the pandemic.

Page County Public Schools has reported 218 cases of COVID-19 within its buildings since opening on Aug. 23, (15 cases reported since last Monday). Of those cases, 20 are still active (as of Nov. 1) with 17 cases among students and three among staff.

The Lord Fairfax Health District has reported 394 new cases of COVID-19 over the last seven days — down from 456 cases the previous week. Clarke and Warren counties and the City of Winchester all saw an increase in cases over the last week. Below is a breakdown of new cases reported since Oct. 25 and each localities’ positivity rate within the health district:

• 122 — Frederick County — 8.3%

• 90 — Shenandoah County — 11.3%

• 87 — Warren County — 9.3%

• 44 — Page County — 9.7%

• 31 — City of Winchester — 6.8%

• 20 — Clarke County — 6.7%

The health district reported 20 hospitalizations related to COVID over the past seven days (45 previous week) and seven related deaths (18 previous week). Two deaths were reported in Frederick County and the City of Winchester, while a single death was reported in Clarke, Page and Warren counties.

Over the past week, Virginia has averaged 1,328 new cases of COVID-19 per day — down from 1,545 the previous week and 2,039 the week prior. Statewide hospitalizations related to COVID-19 have fallen to 934 — down from 1,230 last Monday and the first time under 1,000 since Aug. 12. Currently, 279 patients are in intensive care being treated for COVID, with 188 on ventilators.

Virginia’s seven-day positivity rate continues to drop for a seventh-straight week and is currently 5.5 percent — down from 6.3 percent last Monday and the lowest since late July.

Virginia reported 239 deaths related to COVID-19 over the past week — an average of 34 per day. The commonwealth has reported a total of 13,7984 deaths from COVID-19 since March 14, 2020.

A total of 565 COVID-19 vaccinations were administered in Page County over the past week — up from 272 the previous week. As of Monday’s report by VDH, a cumulative total of 21,688 vaccinations have been given locally, with 11,218 people in the county receiving at least one dose and 10,337 fully vaccinated (or 43.2 percent of the population). A total of 1,050 in the county have received a third shot or booster for the COVID-19 vaccine.

Statewide, Virginia has administered nearly 11.6 million doses of vaccine, with 6 million receiving at least one dose and 5.4 million individuals, or 74.8 percent of the adult population, being fully vaccinated. A total of 575,403 Virginians (or 5.5 percent of the adult population) have received a third “booster” dose of the vaccine.

Unvaccinated individuals and those who are not fully vaccinated should continue wearing a mask, practicing physical distancing, and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces in accordance with federal CDC guidance.

Vaccines are available by pre-registration and appointment. To pre-register, or to update your pre-registration record, visit www.vaccinate.virginia.gov or call 1-877-VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682). English- and Spanish-speaking operators are available. Translation services also are available, in more than 100 languages. For TTY, dial 7-1-1.

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