COVID-19 numbers drop in Huron County

NORWALK — The COVID-19 numbers in Huron County have dropped for the reporting period of Dec. 30 to Jan. 5. This reporting period has recorded a case count of 64 cases, a decrease from 71 cases the previous reporting period. The average age of cases for this reporting period increased slightly from 52 to 62, with the highest number of cases for this week in the 81+ age range. Nine Zip Codes in Huron County reported cases this week, with the highest infection rate in the Bellevue area (44811) Zip Code. While COVID-19 remains present in this community, the U.S. continues to experience increases in other respiratory viruses, like flu and RSV. Huron County Public Health (HCPH) encourages residents to take preventative actions that can help protect yourself and your family from all respiratory viruses, such as: • Avoid close contact with sick people, and stay home if you are sick to protect others. • Wash your hands often, using soap and water, for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. • Cover your coughs and sneezes. • Avoid touching your face with unwashed hands. • Frequently clean and disinfect surfaces (especially high-touch surfaces such as doorknobs and mobile devices). • Vaccines are available for COVID-19 and the flu. If you haven't already, it's not too late to get vaccinated/boosted! Important Notes About This Report COVID-19 case counts included in this report are estimates for the reporting period based on reports generated from the Ohio Department of Health (ODH)'s Ohio Disease Reporting System (ODRS). These data may be impacted by several factors, including but not limited to: • Lack of reporting individual cases (for example, if a self-administered at-home test kit results positive but individual case information is not reported to HCPH or recorded in the ODRS, this case will not be counted by ODH or included in this report); and • Reporting delays with the electronic reporting of cases, especially during surge periods. For continued updates, HCPH reminds residents to continue to use reputable sources for information about COVID-19, including www.huroncohealth.com, www.coronavirus.ohio.gov and www.cdc.gov. Statewide COVID-19 case data can be found on the Ohio Department of Health's COVID-19 Dashboard at: https://coronavirus.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/covid-19/dashboards. • More information about flu can be found by visiting: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/ • More information about RSV can be found by visiting: https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/ COVID-19 Wastewater Monitoring Network Wastewater monitoring for COVID-19 is a real-time, leading indicator that provides trend information regarding what is occurring in a community. Wastewater monitoring data, along with the number of positive individuals that have been tested at medical facilities and hospitalization information, are data sources that can be used to help inform local communities about the level of COVID-19 in their communities. The coronavirus gene fragments from sewage collected at the Norwalk and Monroeville Wastewater Treatment Plants support the increases we are seeing in the number of COVID-19 positive tests medical facilities have reported over the last several weeks. Information about the COVID-19 Wastewater Monitoring Program can be found at https://coronavirus.ohio.gov/dashboards/other-resources/wastewater.