Minnesota National Guard
Officials have identified a “significant increase” in COVID-19 cases in Ely, prompting St. Louis County Public Health to remind people to get tested and quarantined if exposed to further transmission of disease. the virus.
“We know that people are tired and have likely been dealing with information overload about COVID precautions in the past year,” said Amy Westbrook, St. Louis County Director of Health in a statement.
But outbreaks like what we’ve seen in several of our communities over the past two weeks make it very clear that we can’t let our guard down just yet. Vaccinations make a difference, but we all need to stay vigilant and do our part to prevent the spread of this virus. “
In the past week, there have been 33 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ely, which equates to 15% of the total number of cases for all of St. Louis County.
St. Louis Public Health says some cases appear to be “travel related,” but others are related to social gatherings and youth sports.
Related [March 22] Some parents avoid COVID tests for children to keep schools and sports going
Anyone who has spent 15 minutes or more within 6 feet of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 should quarantine for 14 days regardless of whether they are symptomatic or not, with the exception of those who have been fully vaccinated and it’s been at least 14 days since their last dose of the COVID vaccine, the province says.
Meanwhile, St. Louis County Public Health is partnering with schools to provide testing kits for students who may be asymptomatic. People can order a free home saliva test kit from the Minnesota Department of Health here or get tested at Essentia Health Ely Clinic (other testing sites can be found here).
Anyone who has symptoms, has been exposed to COVID-19, or attended a meeting or indoor event should be tested for COVID-19. The health department also encourages students to be tested at least every two weeks and student athletes to be tested every week.
The outbreak in Ely is because cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota were on the rise, especially after an increase in cases of the B.1.1.7 variant first discovered in the UK. That variant is favored by an outbreak in Carver County linked to youth sports and other outbreaks in Scott, Blue Earth and St. Louis counties.
Minnesota has routinely had about 1,000 confirmed cases per day for the past week to 10 days, and the number of hospitalizations has increased from a low of 220 in early March to 332 (as of March 23).