County, city record 55 cases in three days

There were 51 new COVID-19 cases reported in Wise County between Monday and yesterday, according the Virginia Department of Health.

As of Thursday, the county had racked up a total of 3,886 cases since spring 2020, compared to 3,835 cases as of Monday.
The county’s total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 remained at 109.

The health department’s cumulative positive case count for Norton increased by four, from 372 to 376.

The number of total deaths in the city remained at eight.

The delta variant of the virus continues to spread locally and statewide.

In Virginia, the total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began rose from 581,537 Monday to 588,680 yesterday, an increase of 7,143. The number of “probable” cases rose from 181,411 Monday to 185,417 yesterday, an increase of 4,006.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Virginia increased by 60 to 10,034. The number of probable COVID-19 deaths increased by nine to 1,845.

To look at the health department’s data, visit www.vdh.virginia.gov and go to the COVID-19 Data and Resources section.

VACCINATION RATES

More than 46 percent of Wise County residents and more than 53 percent of Norton residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to health department statistics.

However, only 37 percent of county residents and 42 percent of Norton residents are fully vaccinated.

Gov. Ralph Northam announced Aug. 12 that 73 percent of Virginians 18 and older had received at least one dose.

Guidance from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention specifies that those who are unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated should continue to wear masks, practice physical distancing and avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces.