MADERA — Madera County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) reported six more confirmed cases of COVID-19 Friday, bringing the total number of cases countywide to 104 — and capping the single-worst week locally for new cases since the pandemic began.
MCDPH has seen 20 new cases since Monday, a spike the County’s health director called “concerning.”
“We’re watching that closely,” said Sara Bosse, adding that since the pandemic began, the county has been averaging between 0 and 2 cases a day. The County has ramped up testing in recent days, which could be one of the factors contributing to the spike in new cases.
Starting next week, Bosse said MCDPH officials expect to begin reporting more specific geographical information regarding where virus victims are located within the county, a change in policy permitted by State officials since the total number of cases countywide has passed a key threshold.
Friday’s newest cases involve five males ranging in age from the 50s to under 20 — and one female in her in 50s. All are in home isolation and believed to have contracted the virus via person to person contact.
MCDPH also reported Friday that 29 cases remain “active” while 73 county residents who contracted the virus have now recovered.
Four of the active cases are serious enough to require hospitalization, according to MCDPH.
Two Madera County residents, a man in his 60s and a woman in her 70s, died in late March from COVID-19. Both of those victims reportedly had underlying health conditions.
For the latest update from MCDPH, click here.
As of 4 p.m. Friday, there were 106,531 confirmed COVID-19 cases across California, with the total number of deaths statewide now at 4,076.
Nationwide, according to Johns Hopkins, there have been more than 1.7 million confirmed coronavirus cases, with the U.S. death toll this week surpassing the 100,000 mark. As of Friday afternoon, 102,709 Americans had died from COVID-19-related complications.