Rising COVID-19 numbers raising concern in county

With local Covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths approaching numbers seen at the peak of the last wave in December and January, it is leaving area residents wondering what is being done to mitigate the unrelenting spread of the new Delta variant, and how it will be dealt with in our schools.

The Wichita County Public Health Director Lou Kreidler said Tuesday vaccinations and masking are the keys to getting numbers down in the county. “I believe we will continue to see an increase in cases unless we can get more individuals vaccinated, and until we begin to see more individuals wearing a mask, we will continue to see high hospitalization rates.”

She added, “We have 83 hospitalized today, not our highest in this pandemic, but the individuals hospitalized are younger and sicker, and are requiring higher level of care. We are putting pressure on our local hospitals and according to United Regional Healthcare, 90 percent of the cases are unvaccinated.”

Friday last week, the Wichita Falls Wichita County Health District reported 802 new cases (7.4 percent of those cases were vaccinated) for the week for a total of 1,042 active cases currently in Wichita County.

Iowa Park Schools see high infection numbers

In addition, The Iowa Park CISD reported 35 cases in Iowa Park Schools in the first nine days of school, 12 on Tuesday alone, higher than any previous reporting period since the pandemic began.

Kidwell Elementary (pre-kindergarten - second grade) has reported nine student cases and two staff cases; Bradford Elementary (third to fifth grades) three student cases; W.F. George Middle School (sixth to eighth grades), eight student cases and one staff case; and Iowa Park High School (ninth to 12th grades), 10 student cases and one staff case. One confirmed positive case of a transportation worker was also reported by the school district.

In early December, the schools had reported a high of 13 new cases in the two weeks after Thanksgiving, and at that time masks were mandated in the school by a county order.

Now, Texas Governor Greg Abbott is prohibiting any mandates of masks or vaccinations, tying the hands of the school districts who are experiencing alarming numbers of infections. “The city and county leaders have had their hands tied by the Governor. He has essentially taken all local control away,” Kreidler said of Wichita County and local school district’s ability to mitigate the disease based on the experience in their area. “We as a governmental entity cannot mandate masks, not even in the health department.”

With all of the schools in the county starting in the past two weeks, county officials are concerned with the high number of cases among students. Kreidler said Tuesday, “The schools all over the county are having a steep increase in cases. Delta spreads very rapidly and exponentially. Having students in school, not masked with low vaccination rates among those who are eligible for vaccination and allowing contacts to a case to continue to come to school has been and will continue to be a recipe for the rapid spread of COVID.”

Kreidler continued, “I think we will continue to see increasing numbers of cases among school aged children until the Governor or TEA allows for mask mandates in schools again. Faculty are going to work sick and parents are sending students to school sick, which also compounds the problem.”

Four deaths were also reported in Wichita County for last week including one individual in their 20s; one in their 60s; on in their 80s (vaccinated Pfizer) and one in their 90s (reinfections and vaccinated Pfizer).

The number of Covid patients who were recovered and cleared last week was 325.

Last week’s positivity rate (ratio of confirmed positive cases to tests) was 31 percent in Wichita County.

As of last Friday, the Health District was reporting 88 active cases in Iowa Park, 27 in Electra, 201 in Burkburnett and 1042 in Wichita Falls.

So far this week

By press time this week, the number of new cases reported since Friday stood at 278, with five new deaths already reported.

Hospitalizations

As of presstime Wednesday, 84 Wichita County residents are hospitalized for treatment of COVID-19, 24 of those in critical condition.

Vaccinations

All people 12 and older are currently eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Texas, with children who are 12-17 years old allowed to get the Pfizer vaccine.

A comprehensive list of providers and pharmacies administering COVID-19 shots in Wichita County may be found at www. wichitafallstx.gov, then clicking on the COVID-19 tab.

Currently, providers are able to give a third dose to individuals who are severely or moderately immune compromised, and the dose is given 28 days after the second dose. Kreidler said about the purpose of booster shots, “It will build on the immunity a person already has. We know from studies that the vaccine has waning immunity, especially against some of the variants the further out you get from your second dose.”