WEDNESDAY UPDATES: Health officials report 50 active cases in Cole County
UPDATE 10:20 P.M.: Cole County gained 15 additional COVID-19 cases Wednesday, bringing the total since the start of the pandemic to 263.
According to the health department's website, there are 50 active cases in the county and 211 people have recovered.
Data shows that 13% of the patients have been younger than 20 years old. Meanwhile, 41% of the infections have been in people between the ages of 20 and 39 years old. Just 1% of the cases have been in people older than 80.
Health officials said that 1.91% of all patients tested have tested positive.
UPDATE 9:10 P.M.: Phelps and Maries County health officials are asking people who attended a specific event at the Belle Fair to monitor for COVID-19 symptoms.
According to a post on the health department's Facebook page, a person with coronavirus symptoms attended the Belle Dance Team event at the fair. Heath officials said the person wasn't wearing a mask.
Health officials say anyone who watched the event at the fair Saturday night between 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. should watch for symptoms, practice social distancing, and wear a mask while in public for two weeks.
Common symptoms to lookout for include:
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- Loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
The Belle Fair also posted on Facebook saying that the Fair Board submitted a proposal to the health department before the start of the fair. The post said that the health department approved the plan and that fair has adhered to those guidelines.
"We had a great fair and are thrilled that Belle and surrounding communities were able to enjoy their families and have a sense of normalcy," the post said.
UPDATE 4:35 P.M.: Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services said workers confirmed 28 more COVID-19 cases on Wednesday bringing the total to 1,118.
The increase over the last 24 hours was slightly less than Tuesday's increase but still higher than the seven-day average for new cases, which was about 24.
A tweet from the health department included 931 county residents recovered and 184 still had active cases as of Wednesday.
It included 32 Boone County citizens have been hospitalized for COVID-19 during the pandemic and that 4 were still in the hospital.
According to the health department's coronavirus informational dashboard, the county's five-day average of new cases has increased every day this week. The average started at 21.6 on Monday and rose to 23.4 two days later.
The most recent testing data on the site said 457 people were tested in the county on Tuesday, the largest testing volume since July 22.
In a separate tweet sent out Wednesday afternoon, the health department said Boone County added 100 new cases between over the last five days.
ORIGINAL: The Show-Me State set a new record for COVID-19 cases on Wednesday after health officials confirmed more than 1,900 new cases over the past 24 hours.
A tweet from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said the state's coronavirus total rose to 46,750, up 1,927 from Tuesday.
The increase broke Tuesday's record increase by more than 150. It marks the fifth time in a week the state has broken previous increase records.
According to the same tweet, COVID-19 deaths increased by seven to 1,220.
Health officials said the seven-day positivity rate for new cases rose to 9.6%, up a full percentage point from Tuesday. Recent case increases across the state landed Missouri on the White House's 'red list' for COVID-19 cases.
In a string of tweets, the health department said an increase of confirmed cases and an increase in testing has created a backlog of cases.
Health department director Dr. Randall Williams said earlier this week that the backlog will be taken care of by Friday.
