Over six days, 143 cases, two deaths reported

Wise County reported 125 new COVID-19 cases between last Friday and yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

As of yesterday, the county had racked up a total of 4,033 cases since spring 2020, compared to 3,908 cases as of last Friday.
The county’s total number of deaths associated with COVID-19 grew by two, from 110 to 112.

The health department’s cumulative positive case count for Norton increased by 18 over six days, from 379 to 397.

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 596,153 Monday to 603,017 yesterday, an increase of 6,864. The number of “probable” cases rose from 190,757 Monday to 194,331 yesterday, an increase of 3,574.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Virginia increased by 68 to 10,149. The number of probable COVID-19 deaths increased by 13 to 1,861.

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

As of yesterday, about 47 percent of Wise County residents and 54 percent of Norton residents have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, according to health department statistics.

However, only 38 percent of county residents and 43 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.