5 positive cases of COVID in students
There have been five positive cases of COVID-19 among students throughout Madison County and another two faculty and staff impacted, according to data from the Mississippi State Department of Health.
The data was updated Tuesday, Sept. 1 and specific schools are not named.
Madison County Schools begins their fall term this week virtually, with plans to return in-person later this month. Canton schools are all-virtual. However, private schools throughout the metro have been in session since early-August.
According to MSDH, a total of 23 students in Madison County had been quarantined due to exposure during the week of Aug. 24-28. Another eight faculty and staff were quarantined.
The state does not report which specific school districts are impacted and by how much.
On Monday, Gov. Tate Reeves extended a statewide mask order for another 10 days and expanded the capacity for sporting events and other high school extracurricular activities to 25 percent. This came after the state reported the lowest total number of daily cases since early this summer with 274.
Reeves urged Mississippians to remain vigilant and said that if this trend continues for the next 10 days it can really have meaningful impact on the overall situation in the state.
On Wednesday, the state reported 781 new cases and 33 new deaths.
Mississippi had its highest daily case numbers peak over 1,600 near the end of July.
In Madison County, 207 cases have been identified in the last week, bringing the total here to 3,009.
In total, 84,365 Mississippians have either been confirmed or presumed to have COVID-19, with 2,526 total deaths. The state’s total cases have risen by nearly 5,200 in the last week — the same as the week before — and the death total has climbed over 250. While the infection rate is trending down, the death rate doubled from the week before.
Mississippians also remain under a statewide public health order that requires anyone who has tested positive and not in the hospital to isolate immediately or face fines or possible jail time.
Failure to comply can result in a minimum misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $500 or six months imprisonment or both. When a life-threatening disease is involved, failure to obey is a felony, punishable by a fine up to $5,000 or five years imprisonment or both.
As of Tuesday, the state reported 83 COVID-related deaths in Madison County, up two from 81 last week. There have been 230 cases in long-term care facilities and 41 deaths.
The MSDH is reporting statewide that hospitalizations have declined from 758 to 663 since last week, with ICU patients down from 237 to 196. Ventilator usage dropped from 127 to 117.