MARTINSVILLE, Va. (WDBJ) - With 717 cases in Henry County and 265 in Martinsville, health officials say the area is trending in a completely opposite direction than they had hoped.
“We are not doing good in our part of the state, and we need to pay attention and do what we can,” said Nancy Bell with the West Piedmont Health District.
Henry County and Martinsville have seen 120 hospitalizations and 16 total deaths. Bell says those numbers should be alarming to residents.
“These are real people, real neighbors that we know, and the amount of deaths in the West Piedmont Health District are comparatively higher than the rest of the state so it is a scary time,” Bell added.
Bell says outbreaks have been the source of most of the new cases. On Monday, four employees at Laurel Park Middle School tested positive for COVID-19 and two inmates at the Henry County jail, along with a number of employees tested positive this week.
Officials are concerned about the available space to keep it from spreading inside of the jail.
“Overcrowding has been an issue, which is a negative factor in the spread of COVID, but we’ve reduced our numbers,” said Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry.
As multiple nursing homes are handling outbreaks right now, Bell says the public should be concerned about it reaching the community.
“There have been what I call a reverse outbreak where it leaves the nursing home and goes into the community,” said Bell.
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Outbreaks drive Martinsville and Henry County continued spike in COVID-19 cases - WDBJ
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