MADERA — Madera County Department of Public Health reported four new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases so far countywide to 66.
Officials said the four newest cases are all females, ranging in age from under 20 to 50s. All are in home isolation. Three of the four new cases were contracted through person-to-person transmission and the fourth case, the woman in her 50s, is still under investigation.
Health officials are reporting that 24 of the 66 total cases remain “active” while 40 people have fully recovered.
Two county residents, a man in his 60s and a woman in her 70s, have died. Both of those victims reportedly had underlying health conditions.
County health officials have monitored nearly 1,015 people so far for COVID-19. While only a handful of Madera County coronavirus victims have had to be hospitalized, cases of potential person-to-person transmission appear to be on the rise this week. In Friday’s update, MCDPH officials said they are now “monitoring” 102 additional individuals for COVID-19.
For the latest update from MCDPH, click here.
Mariposa County, which has reported a total of 15 COVID-19 cases to date, has not reported a new case since early this week.
Other neighboring counties have not been so fortunate: Tulare County has reported more than 1,000 cases to date — and 44 deaths — while Fresno County has seen 840 cases and nine deaths.
Earlier this week, the Madera County Board of Supervisors authorized Sheriff Jay Varney to send a letter to the governor asking that Madera County be allowed to move more quickly into the next phase of business openings.
On Friday, the director of the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services warned three rural counties — Yuba, Sutter and Modoc — that if they went ahead with their own plans to open up again earlier than allowed by the governor’s four-phased plan, those counties risked losing coronavirus disaster funding.
As of 5 p.m Friday, there have been 63,698 confirmed COVID-19 cases across California, with the statewide death toll now at 2,610.
