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Coming off a second consecutive record-breaking week of coronavirus cases and a holiday weekend, state officials fear the worst: even more cases of the potentially deadly disease.

And as the state sees more and more cases, so do Clark and surrounding counties.

 

State marks six months of virus activity with record numbers

During the week of Aug. 31 to Sept. 6, Kentucky reported 4,742 new cases of the virus, even more than the previous week. The week of Aug. 24-30, which was previously the record-high week, there were 4,503 new cases reported.

The state has seen a steady incline of cases over the past six months.

The virus arrived in Kentucky in March, when there were four cases reported the week of March 2-8, and then 16 the week of March 9-15, 84 the week of March 16-22 and 335 the week of March 23-29.

Since April, the state has not reported fewer than 900 new cases each week, with only two weeks (April 13-19 and May 18-24) falling under 1,000 new cases.

“We’re facing the challenge of our lifetimes and we must do better,” Beshear said. “These past six months have been devastating for so many Kentucky families. These months also will be remembered as a time when Kentuckians lived up to our reputation as compassionate, resolute and resilient people who take care of one another.”

July marked a noticeable incline in cases, especially after the July 4 holiday,  jumping from 1,675 new cases the final week of June to 2,482 the first full week of July.

State officials fear a similar fate following the Labor Day holiday.

“Pleasant weather across Kentucky and a holiday weekend may result in more cases reported,” Health Commissioner Steven Stack said in a release. “We’ll know in two to three weeks.”

Over the past eight weeks, the state has not reported fewer than 3,700 new cases weekly.

As of Monday, there has been at least 53,064 cases of the virus.

The state also barely missed the 1,000-deaths mark. So far, there have been 996 deaths attributed to the virus in Kentucky.

There have been more than 10,000 cases of the virus reported in people age 20 to 29, which is the highest among the age ranges. The fewest cases remain among the younger than 9 and older than 80 range.

“As of Monday, at least 927,819 tests had been administered,” according to a press release from the Governor’s Office. “The COVID-19 testing positive rate, based on a seven-day rolling average, taking into account total positive tests reported by laboratories divided by total tests reported by labs, stood at 4.34 percent.”

At least 10,648 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

 

Clark sees slower rise in cases

As the state sees a significant rise in cases, Clark is seeing a much slower increase.

The county has reported 382 total cases, including five new cases reported Monday.

The Clark County Health Department is working 34 active cases as of Monday.

From Sunday, Aug. 30, to Sunday, Sept. 6, the Health Department reported 25 new cases.

In surrounding counties, the following cases have been reported as of Sunday:

— Fayette: 4,545 (the second-highest total in the state)

— Madison: 1,232 (in the Top 10 counties for highest numbers)

— Estill: 61

— Powell: 85

— Bourbon: 129

— Montgomery: 210.