Covid-19 trends downward with just 14 new cases this week
Dartmouth’s Covid-19 cases keep trending downward as new Board of Health data released June 12 show just 14 new confirmed cases in the past week — the lowest number of new cases since the height of the surge earlier this spring.
The town has now seen 385 confirmed cases of the virus and 36 Covid-related deaths as of Friday.
In the last week of April, Dartmouth saw as many as 78 new cases in just one week. The number of new cases has remained in a range of 25-50 since then — until now, that is.
Governor Charlie Baker announced on May 26 that the surge “is behind us.”
Public Information Officer Kyle Costa said previously that the numbers are “consistent with what’s going on nationally.”
Costa noted, “This area in particular has done an amazing job staying on top of things...I think it’s a credit to everybody who’s listening to recommendations.”
He added that people should remain cautious and continue to follow state and CDC guidelines recommending regular hand washing, social distancing, and wearing a face covering in public.
“There could be an uptick, a second surge,” Costa said. “Being overly cautious is better than not being cautious enough. That’s the position that we’ve taken from day one and we’re gonna continue to do that until we beat this thing.”
Roughly half of the town’s cases were in congregate living facilities including nursing homes, assisted living, and health care and correctional facilities.
Bliss Corner nursing home Brandon Woods, one of the hardest hit facilities, is Covid-free and now accepting visitors again after a coronavirus outbreak that left more than 20 residents dead, said parent company CEO Frank Romano.
The outbreak started with just two confirmed cases on April 10, a number that jumped to 18 within the week and eventually affected more than 70 staff and residents at the facility.
There are 105,059 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Massachusetts as of June 12, with 7,872 in Bristol County. 7,538 people have died of the illness in the state.