County Records Largest Weekly Spike Since Pandemic Started

WATER VALLEY – With 86 confirmed new coronavirus cases reported during the last week, Yalobusha County recorded the largest weekly spike since the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) first started tracking the cases back in March. The spike also brings the total number of cases in December to 236 as of Monday, which is also the most cases in a single month with three reporting days remaining.
The spike last week comes despite a two-day period following Christmas day when MSDH reported fewer positive cases statewide as most clinics were closed due to the holiday.  A look at the seven-day tally shows the following case count: 21 cases on Dec. 22, eight on Dec. 23, 21 on Dec. 24, 10 on Dec. 25, three on Dec. 26, 12 on Dec. 27 and 11 on Dec. 28.
The state agency also reported one new corona-related death in the county during the last week, pushing the total number of deaths to 31. Twenty-two of the deaths this year were reported in a long-term care facility and nine deaths were recorded in the general population.
A monthly breakdown of Covid cases shows there were six cases recorded in the county in March, 14 cases in April, 74 in May, 67 in June, 151 in July, 62 in August, 75 in September, 129 in October, 153 in November and 236 so far in December, bringing the total number  to 967.
As of Dec. 27, MSDH reported there were 1,282 people hospitalized in Mississippi with confirmed infections. Of those, 321 were in the ICU and 193 were on ventilators. The agency also noted that the majority of people who get COVID-19 will not require hospitalization, according to health officials. The agency reported there has been 206,388 cases identified in the state this year, with 4,606 confirmed deaths.
Yalobusha is among 78 Mississippi counties under a mask mandate ordered by Governor Tate Reeves.