COVID-19 cases are surging in Wichita County
Local active COVID-19 cases rose even higher, as the Wichita Falls-Wichita County Public Health District reported another record of 212 cases in the past week in Wichita County. This brings the number of active infecfections in the county to 422 as of Tuesday evening.
The county recorded 129 recoveries from the virus in the past week as well.
The previous high during a seven-day reporting period in the Iowa Park Leader was last week when the WFW-CPHD reported 187 new infections, and this week’s cases indicate a doubling of cases from two weeks ago.
Asked by the Iowa Park Leader what she attributes to the rise in infections, County Health Director Lou Kreidler cited “Covid fatigue” and not taking necessary precautions.
“People have gotten lax in wearing a mask,” Kriedler said. “People are tired of hearing about it.” She also mentioned athletic leagues in and out of school, parties, weddings and other social events where people don’t feel the urgency to social distance or take precautions.
“People really need to think about the risk of having a party. Be aware that it is everywhere,” Kreidler said.
She also warned that cas es of flu are starting to show up in Wichita County, and she urged all citizens to get their flu shots as well.
As of Friday evening, the health unit was reporting that the Iowa Park zip code had 49 active cases, or 14.24 percent of those in the county.
The Iowa Park School District was notified in the past week of four students who tested positive, including one student at W.F. George Middle School, and three at Iowa Park High School.
One of the IPHS student was classified as no risk by the health unit as the student had not been on campus all week; and the other three reports were classified as low risk.
As of Tuesday evening, a total of 24,788 Wichita County residents had been tested for COVID-19, with 2,051 of those positive. Of those, 1,606 have recovered. The number of tests pending is 382.
Eleven people with confirmed cases of COVID-19 are currently hospitalized, with three of those listed in critical condition. The latest information on hospitalizations released by the WFWC Public Health District include:
Hospitalizations
Case 1,434: 50 - 59, critical condition
Case 1,756: 70 - 79, critical condition
Case 1,827: 50 - 59, stable condition
Case 1,855: 60 - 69, stable condition
Case 1,871: 60 - 69, stable condition
Case 1,876: 50 - 59, critical condition
Case 1,930: 20 - 29, stable condition
Case 1,961: 30 - 39, stable condition
Case 1,974: 80 - 89, stable condition
Case 1,975: 70 - 79, stable condition
Case 2,002: 60 - 69, stable condition
