Surge in COVID-19 Cases centered in Northern Chautauqua County

105 Active Cases under Mandatory Isolation; “Please help stop the Spread of this Virus!”

(MEDIA RELEASE – Submitted 4:33 p.m. on Aug. 31, 2020)

MAYVILLE, NY – The Public Health division of the County’s Department of Health and Human Services continues to be concerned about the increase in COVID-19 infections in northern Chautauqua County.  This increase reinforces the reality that the novel coronavirus is circulating and community mitigation efforts are necessary to help control the spread of infection.

Thirty-six new cases of COVID-19 were reported to the Health Department from August 29-31.  Individuals who tested positive are placed under mandatory isolation orders and their identified close contacts are placed in mandatory quarantine by order of the Public Health Director.  Twelve of the new cases were tied to the current outbreak at Fieldbrook Foods, Inc., six were workers and six were identified close contacts of the workers.  To date, 75 positive cases have been associated with Fieldbrook Foods.  Testing reports for the New York State rapid testing site in Dunkirk have been received for Saturday and Sunday.  Three individuals tested positive out of the 248 tested (1.2%).

“Today, we have 105 active cases of COVID-19 in the community.  For the first half of August we experienced, on average, 13.6 active cases per day, with an active case rate of 1.07 per 10,000 in Chautauqua County,” reported Breeanne Agett, Epidemiologist with DHHS. “We are currently experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases that is nearly 8 times greater than we see on average.”

“We’ve been cautious to share case information only by fire battalion because we were dealing with small numbers.  Using aggregated data such as this is appropriate to minimize the need for data suppression,” said Christine Schuyler, County Public Health Director.  “We are now dealing with a surge of cases and these higher numbers allow us to share more specific data and not breach confidentiality.”

Agett provided the following data on the current COVID-19 situation in the County:

Active Case Number (% of County Total)                Active Case Rate per 10,000 Residents
Chautauqua County:       105                                    8.35
Dunkirk:                           60 (57%)                           47.96
Fredonia:                         14 (13%)                           13.33
Jamestown:                      25 (24%)                           8.52

“We are working with everyone we think of – local elected officials, college and school officials, community organizations, health care providers, emergency responders, law enforcement, churches, and community leaders – in an effort to help everyone stay abreast of the situation, deploy education and information, and get the entire community to stop this outbreak,” added Schuyler.

All businesses are being asked to increase the implementation of disease mitigation efforts.  Private citizens are being asked to take greater measures to protect themselves and others. Large public and private gatherings and parties are not permitted; this will be actively enforced by law enforcement and public health officials.

These steps must be followed:

• Stay home if you feel ill;
• Wear a mask or covering over your nose and mouth when you can’t maintain physical distancing of at least 6 feet;
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water; use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol;
• Avoid large gatherings;
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and objects;
• Avoid international travel and travel to states listed in the NYS Travel Advisory; if travel is unavoidable, quarantine for 14 days upon returning to Chautauqua County.

August 31 Chautauqua County Statistics:

• 105 active cases, continue to recover under orders of the Local Health Official per NYS Public Health Law including:
  • 36 new cases were reported from August 29-31 including:
    • 5 persons under the age of 18,
    • 6 males in their 20’s,
    • 5 females in their 20’s,
    • 2 females in their 30’s,
    • 1 male in his 30’s,
    • 4 females in their 40’s,
    • 1 male in his 40’s,
    • 2 females in their 50’s,
    • 1 male in his 50’s,
    • 4 females in their 60’s,
    • 1 male in his 60’s,
    • 1 male in his 70’s,
    • 1 female in her 70’s,
    • 1 male in his 80’s,
    • 1 female in his 80’s.
• 384 cases under quarantine/isolation orders by the Public Health Director and being monitored.  Not all of those being monitored are confirmed to have COVID-19 but have either shown symptoms, are awaiting results, or have risk factors;
• 544 persons under domestic traveler quarantine for having arrived to Chautauqua County from a state listed on the New York State travel advisory;
• 2 person hospitalized* in Chautauqua County as of 8/27/2020

*number of persons in Chautauqua County hospitals diagnosed with COVID-19, regardless of residency

• To date:
  • 282 recovered cases;
  • 9 deaths;
  • 396 total confirmed cases;
  • 34,268 negative test results to date.

The state’s free rapid testing at the Dunkirk Fire Murphy Training Grounds at 665 Brigham Road in Dunkirk remains open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Wednesday by appointment only.  All residents are eligible for tests and appointments can be made by calling 833-697-8764. All tests at these sites are free of charge and results will be available within 15 minutes to help support contact tracing efforts and control the spread of the virus.

For more information about COVID-19 in Chautauqua County, visit https://chqgov.com. For general information about COVID-19, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.