THURSDAY UPDATES: Cole County reports record 129 COVID-19 cases
UPDATE 5:58 P.M.: Cole County Health Department is reporting a record number of cases Thursday.
Today report is 129 new cases. The health department says this is the second day in a row above 100 cases and third time in six days.
The previous record was on Saturday/Halloween when 124 cases were reported.
The county is reporting 3,539 total COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started.
The health department is reporting 44 new active cases bringing the total to 535 active cases in the county.
The county is reporting 2,830 total recoveries.
Jefferson City School District reporting more COVID-19 cases across the district
UPDATE 5:30 P.M.: Jefferson City School District is reporting new COVID-19 cases in students and staff.
The district reports four new Jefferson City High students and one from Moreau Heights tested positive today.
In the Thursday update, one staff member each from SWECC, East, and Lewis and Clark Middle School reported positive tests.
The district is reporting five students and two staff were reported as close contacts and must quarantine.
Since school began on August 24, the district has reported 274 total cases and 390 close contacts. Overall, 154 have been students with 92 coming from the two high schools. There has been 120 staff that have tested positive as well.
The close contacts are reported to be 336 students and 54 staff across the district.
COVID-19 forcing Moberly School District online; Moniteau County reports death
UPDATE 5 P.M.: The Moberly School District is moving all its classes online starting Tuesday because of the number of staff in quarantine for coronavirus exposure.
Students will continue to learn online until after Thanksgiving, according to a letter to families posted on the district’s social media accounts. The district stressed that students should attend class Friday and Monday to get prepared for all-online classes that begin Tuesday.
Extra-curricular activities will continue with “appropriate precautions in place,” the district said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many staff members or students are in quarantine in Moberly. The district puts out daily updates on its website but the updates only detail numbers of new cases and close contacts. The district said Wednesday that a high school employee and middle school student had tested positive for coronavirus and three students were identified as close contacts.
On Friday, 15 high school students were quarantined after one student tested positive.
Randolph County has reported 936 total COVID-19 cases with 327 of them currently active.
Moberly is one of many schools to announce a switch to online classes this week as virus numbers increase around the area. Alpha Hart Lewis, Derby Ridge, Ridgeway and West Boulevard elementary schools are learning online in Columbia Public Schools. Public school districts in California and Fulton also announced switches to online learning this week.
Moniteau County reports 13th death
Moniteau County reported its 13th COVID-19 death Thursday.
The person who died was in their 60s, the county health center said. Officials did not release any more details.
The Moniteau County Health Center reported its 12th death – the seventh in a two-week period -- one week ago. The county is seeing a surge in cases like much of Mid-Missouri and is in the White House’s “red zone” for a high rate of new cases. Health officials said Wednesday in a social media post that contract tracing is being delayed because of the high volume of cases.
The health center reported 895 cases Thursday with 143 active. Only one of the active cases is in congregate living facilities such as the prison in Tipton, according to the health center.
Boone County reports record 222 new COVID-19 cases
UPDATE 4:35 P.M.: The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting a record number of new COVID-19 cases.
According to the health department, there are 222 new COVID-19 cases today breaking the previous record of 221 set in early September.
The number of active cases went by 170 to 812.
Health Department Assistant Director Scott Clardy say there is no specific reason for the current spike in cases, but that a preliminary review showed a large number of cases from outside Columbia.
The health department is reporting 51 cases recovered bringing the total to 6,104.
The county has gone up to 112 five-day average, the first time the five-day average has gone triple digits in nearly two months.
Boone County is reporting a positive rate at 17.8% from Oct. 23 to Oct. 29. That is a 5.7% increase from the previously reported week.
The department is also reporting a record 117 hospitalizations -- an increase of three from Tuesday.
Currently there are 33 COVID-19 patients in the ICU.
According to the numbers posted on the department's COVID-19 dashboard, 21 of the 117 patients are from Boone County.
The department reports 24 patients on ventilators.
Cases are also on the rise at the University of Missouri. MU reported 100 active cases Thursday -- an increase of 30 over the past two days.
Boone County reports 18th COVID-19 related death
UPDATE 3:10 P.M.: Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting the 18th COVID-19 related death.
Officials say the individual was over the age of 80.
Camden (37), Miller (27) and Pettis (28) have more COVID-19 related deaths reported than Boone County.
The dashboard will be updated later this afternoon with more information.
West Boulevard Elementary becomes latest school to restart virtual learning
UPDATE 3:06 P.M.: West Boulevard Elementary in Columbia is the latest school in the district reverting to virtual learning because of a staffing shortage.
A release sent out Thursday afternoon said it's the fifth elementary school to restart virtual learning after students returned in-person recently.
District officials say virtual learning will start on Friday and the earliest students could return to the classroom is Nov. 17.
Two other CPS elementary schools started virutal learning today.
Missouri sets multiple pandemic records after 3,500 case increase
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said the state set multiple pandemic records on Thursday after reporting 3,553 new COVID-19 cases.
The record is 500 more than the previous high set last week.
According to information added to the health department's coronavirus dashboard, statewide COVID-19 cases went up to 196,576 from Wednesday's total of 193,023.
The dashboard said Missouri virus-related deaths went up 18 to 3,106.
The health department-calculated seven-day positivity rate increased to 30% on Thursday, up 0.8% from the day before. In three weeks, the rate has increased by nearly 10%.
Health officials said the CDC seven-day rate was up to 15.2%, another pandemic record.
The health department reported Missouri COVID-19 hospitalizations were up to 1,774. Over the last day, hospitalizations increased by more than 100.
The state ranked 10th in the country for new coronavirus cases over the last seven days with 17,464 and ninth for new deaths, 78, over the same time period, the dashboard said.
