COVID-19 risk up in Garfield County, but under threshold to keep in-person classes at Enid schools

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ENID, Okla. — The average number of daily new COVID-19 cases in Garfield County rose considerably this past week but stayed under the threshold set to keep in-person classes at Enid Public Schools.

There were 47.7 new cases per day, on average, for 100,000 population, the week of Oct. 2 through Thursday in Garfield County, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health's alert map that measures the COVID-19 risk levels each week. The county, along with 70 of Oklahoma's 77 counties, remains in the orange, or moderate, risk for the virus, according to OSDH. Last week, Garfield County's daily average was 41.9.

Officials with Enid and Chisholm public schools have announced they will offer in-person classes for students as long as the daily average remains below 50 per 100,000 population.

There were six counties, including Woods County in Northwest Oklahoma, that were under yellow, or low, risk in the state, and one county, Noble, just east of Garfield, that was in the green, or "new normal," risk for COVID-19, with zero cases as a daily average, according to OSDH.

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Statewide, however, the number of new cases neared record levels, with 1,524 on Friday, according to the OSDH. That is second only to the 1,714 cases gained July 21, according to Saxum, the public relations firm hired to represent the Health Department. Tuesday the state recorded what was then the third-highest daily gain at 1,364.

Six additional deaths also were reported by the OSDH on Friday, with one of those in the past 24 hours. None of the new deaths were in Northwest Oklahoma.

Garfield County gained 21 new COVID-19 cases Friday for a total of 1,992, with 361 of those active and 1,609 recovered, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Enid gained 17 for a total of 1,838, with 311 active and 1,505 recovered.

The state's 1.6% increase in cases Friday took the overall total of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 97,088, with 13,515 of those active, a single-day gain of 325, and 82,482, or just under 85%, having recovered, including 1,193 since Thursday's OSDH report. Overall, there have been 1,091 deaths in which the virus was the cause or a contributing factor since the pandemic reached Oklahoma in March, according to the OSDH.

Deaths reported Friday were three in the 65 and older age range, men in Grady, Muskogee and Tulsa counties; two in the 50-64 age group, a Canadian County man and Ottawa County woman; and one was in the 36-49 age group, a Payne County man.

Other Northwest Oklahoma county case increases on Friday were 17 in Woodward, nine in Kingfisher, five in Blaine, two each in Grant and Major and one in Alfalfa. Case increases in Northwest Oklahoma cities and towns included 11 in Fort Supply, seven in Woodward, four in Kingfisher, three in Medford, two each in Ames, Hennessey, Ringwood and Waukomis and one each in Burlington, Dover, Covington, Mulhall, Okeene, Pond Creek and Seiling.

White House report

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Nationally, the state remains under the White House COVID-19 report's red zone, but the state made gains toward the last week of September and first of October, moving from 5th in the nation in terms of rate of COVID-19 cases to 10th. Oklahoma has the 5th-highest rate in the country for test positivity, according to the same report.

The state saw decreases in terms of new cases and test positivity over the week Sept. 26 through Oct. 2, according to the White House report.

Hospitalizations

There have been a cumulative 7,124 Oklahomans hospitalized who have tested positive for COVID-19, with a single-day increase of 102 on Friday. Of those, 749 were hospitalized, a single-day increase of nine, with 245 in intensive care, an increase of 31, as of OSDH’s Friday evening Executive Report.

With hospitalizations on the rise in the state, there are 132 of 1,037, or 13%, ICU beds available, with 94% reporting compliance among facilities, according to that same report.

Medical surgery bed availability was at 17%, PICU beds were at 21% and negative flow rooms were at 32%. There were 45 Oklahomans hospitalized who had tested positive for COVID-19 in the Northwest region of the state, according to the Executive Report.

Locally on Friday, St. Mary's Regional Medical Center had 11 inpatients who had tested positive for COVID-19 and the facility reported a death. Integris Bass Baptist Health Center had nine.

State numbers

OSDH reports 1,336,562 cumulative specimens have been tested for COVID-19 in the state this year, with 1,224,883, or 91.6% of those negative as of Friday. Those testing positive represent 2.45% of the state's population, listed at 3,956,971 in 2019, according to census.gov.

There have been 50,656 Oklahoma women and 46,365 men who have tested positive for COVID-19 as of the OSDH report Friday morning. There were 67 listed as unknown gender.

The 18-35 age group, with 478 new cases confirmed Friday, made up 35.5% of cases in the state. Other new case gains were 317 in the 36-49 age group, 290 in the 50-64 age group, 246 in the 65 and older age group, 174 in the 5-17 age group and 21 in the 0-4 group.

Cumulative totals of confirmed cases as of Friday were 1,863 in the 0-4 age group, 9,318 in the 5-17 age group, 34,505 in the 18-35 age group, 20,648 in the 36-49 age group, 17,321 in the 50-64 age group and 13,421 in the 65 and older age group. There were 12 listed as unknown age. The average age of those who have tested positive for COVID-19 is 39.5. 

Of the overall 1,091 deaths in the state in which the virus was the cause or a contributor, 876 have been 65 and older and 167 have been ages 50-64, making up a combined 95.6% of the total. There have been 34 deaths in the 36-49 age group, 13 in the 18-35 age group and one in the 5-17 age group. More men, 607, than women, 484, have succumbed to the virus, according to OSDH on Friday. The average age of those who have died is 74.6.

OSDH reports 74.5% of those who have died have had a pre-existing condition. Of the deaths, 420, or 38.5%, have been long-term care or nursing home cases, according to OSDH. There have been 3,084 cases among long-term care residents and 1,748 cases among staff, according to Friday's Executive Report.

Data shows deaths in 68 of Oklahoma's 77 counties, with 200 in Oklahoma County; 176 in Tulsa County; 81 in Cleveland County; 53 in Rogers County; 41 in Washington County; 35 each in Creek and McCurtain counties; 26 each in Delaware, Muskogee and Wagoner counties; 22 in Garfield County; 21 each in Caddo and LeFlore counties; 20 in Pittsburg County; 18 in Canadian County; 15 in Kay; 13 each in Comanche and Osage counties; 12 each in Grady and Sequoyah counties; 11 each in Mayes and Pottawatomie counties; 10 each in Adair, Jackson, Lincoln and Texas counties; nine in Carter County; eight each in Beckham, Cherokee, Greer, McIntosh, Okmulgee, Ottawa and Payne counties; seven in McClain County; six in Seminole County; five each in Bryan, Garvin, Okfuskee, Pawnee, Stephens and Woodward counties; four each in Haskell, Hughes, Johnston and Nowata counties; three each in Cotton, Noble, Pontotoc and Pushmataha counties; two each in Choctaw, Kingfisher, Kiowa, Latimer, Logan, Major, Marshall, Murray and Tillman counties; and one each in Atoka, Blaine, Craig, Custer, Dewey, Grant, Harper, Love and Roger Mills counties.

Northwest Oklahoma

COVID-19 data per county released Friday by OSDH:

• Garfield with 1,992 cases, 1,609 recovered, 361 active and 22 deaths, all in Enid, reported Oct. 3, Sept. 30, 25, 24, 17, 12, 11, 10, 4, Aug. 29, 27, 26, 18, 15, 14, 13, and 6, July 28 and 23, June 21 and April 10;

• Woodward with 1,159 cases, 1,060 recovered, 94 active and five deaths, one in Fort Supply reported Oct. 2, two in Woodward and one in Mooreland reported Sept. 26 and an inmate at William S. Key Correctional Center in Fort Supply reported Sept. 22;

• Kingfisher with 436 cases, 358 recovered, 76 active and two deaths, both in Hennessey, reported Sept. 1 and Aug. 27;

• Noble with 162 cases, 145 recovered, 14 active and three deaths, including a Billings man in the 65 and older age range;

• Blaine with 153 cases, 131 recovered, 21 active and one death, a Canton man, reported Aug. 28;

• Woods with 120 cases, 111 recovered and 18 active;

• Major with 113 cases, 93 recovered, 18 active and two deaths, one reported Oct. 3 and a woman in 18-35 age group in April;

• Alfalfa with 84 cases, 66 recovered and 18 active;

• Grant with 60 cases, 47 recovered, 12 active and one death, in Deer Creek, reported Sept. 29.

Cumulative COVID-19 cases by city or town in Northwest Oklahoma include 1,838 in Enid (311 active); Fort Supply 881 (43 active); 213 in Woodward (42 active); 175 in Hennessey (17 active); 160 in Kingfisher (36 active); 103 in Alva (six active); 58 in Watonga (five active); 52 in Helena (eight active); 51 in Fairview (six active); 46 in Okarche (seven active); 36 in Mooreland (five active); 32 in Garber (six active); 26 in Waukomis (12 active); 25 in Canton (two active); 24 in Dover, (six active); 23 each in Cashion (two active) and Okeene (five active); 21 each in Lahoma (eight active) and Medford (five active); 20 each in Cherokee (five active) and Ringwood (three active); 18 in Seiling (two active); 17 in Fairmont (seven active); 16 in Pond Creek (five active); 13 in Ames (six active); 12 in Longdale (three active); 11 in Billings; 10 each in Cleo Springs (three active), Covington (five active) and Lamont (one active); nine in Kremlin (two active); eight each in Meno and Waynoka (three active); seven in Orlando; six each in Hunter (three active), Nash and Mullhall (two active); five in Hitchcock (one active); four each in Burlington (three active), Drummond, Freedom, Goltry (two active), Jet, Marshall, Sharon (three active) and Wakita (one active); three in Hillsdale (one active); two in Deer Creek; and one in Carmen, according to data released by OSDH on Friday. Residents living in areas with under 100 in population or those with unknown addresses may be recorded as "other." 

In Enid, there have been 965 cases, with 813 recovered and 12 deaths from the 73701 ZIP code, primarily the eastern half of the city, and 866 cases, with 684 recovered and 10 deaths from 73703, or the western half, according to OSDH data on Friday. There also has been one recovered case in the 73705 ZIP code, which is listed as Vance Air Force Base at https://www.unitedstateszipcodes.org/.

Long-term care cases

Long-term care facilities that saw increases on the Friday evening Executive Report by the OSDH included The Living Center, which gained five, and The Commons, which gained one, in Enid.

Long-term care or nursing home COVID-19 cases listed by OSDH in Garfield County include 27 cases with 21 recovered and five deaths at Golden Oaks Village; 18 cases with 16 recovered and one death at Kenwood Manor; 19 cases with eight recovered and one death at The Living Center; six cases with five recovered at The Arbors Assisted Living Center; five recovered cases at Greenbrier Nursing Home and one recovered case at Greenbrier Village Residential Living; 26 cases with 10 recovered at The Commons; two recovered cases at Enid Senior Care; and one recovered case at Garland Road Nursing and Rehab Center, according to OSDH data released Friday evening.

COVID-19 cases in area long-term care facilities include three cases with two recovered at Summers HealthCare in Blaine County; one recovered case at Community Health Center in Grant County; one recovered case at Billings Fairchild Center in Noble County; three recovered cases each at First Shamrock Care Center, two recovered cases at Countrywood Assisted Living and Memory Care and 73 cases with 71 recovered and two deaths at Hennessey Nursing & Rehab, in Kingfisher County; two recovered cases at Fairview Fellowship Home for Senior Citizens in Major County; two recovered cases each at Beadles Nursing Home and Share Medical Center in Woods County; 21 cases with 20 recovered at Mooreland Heritage Manor and 31 cases with 27 recovered and two deaths at Woodward Skilled Nursing and Therapy in Woodward County; and five recovered cases at Center of Family Love in Okarche, just south of the Kingfisher County line, in Canadian County, according to OSDH.

COVID-19 testing

State Health Department officials are encouraging Oklahomans to get tested for COVID-19, saying recently that due to adequate supplies, residents no longer need to exhibit symptoms or report exposure to someone with the virus to get in line for testing.

Free testing for COVID-19 is ongoing at the Garfield County and other state Health Departments. Testing is by appointment only for Blaine County, 521 W. 4th, Watonga, (580) 623-7977; Garfield County, 2501 S. Mercer, Enid, (580) 233-0650; Grant County, 115 N. Main, Medford, (580) 395-2906; Kingfisher County, 124 E. Sheridan, courthouse annex room #101, Kingfisher, (405) 375-3008; Major County, 501 E. Broadway, Fairview, (580) 227-3362; Noble County, 300 Fir St., Perry, (580) 336-2257; Woods County, 511 Barnes St., Alva, (580) 327-3192; and Woodward County, 1631 Texas Ave., Woodward, (580) 256-6416. For a full list of county drive-through testing, go to https://coronavirus.health.ok.gov/drive-thru-testing. Some health department also advise the public to check their Facebook pages for more information regarding testing.

COVID-19 signs

Emergency warning signs for COVID-19 are trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to arouse, bluish lips or face, according to the CDC. More information can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html.

Those with symptoms of COVID-19 should call ahead to local emergency rooms. Those with minor symptoms should contact their regular physicians.

Resources and information on COVID-19 can be obtained by calling 211 or going to https://covidresources.ok.gov/.

BREAKING NEWS on the COVID-19 threat and its impact is available at https://www.enidnews.com/virus and is free for all readers. That includes information on closings and cancellations.

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•• Information also can be found at https://coronavirus.health.ok.gov/ and https://www.cdc.gov/.