Ky. reached largest one-day total of new COVID-19 cases Sunday; Bell County reports four new cases

Gov. Andy Beshear reported Sunday afternoon that 979 newly reported cases of COVID-19 had been confirmed statewide, including three new deaths. This was the largest single-day total of new COVID-19 cases in the commonwealth.

“We typically have limited reporting on Sunday which makes today’s record-setting number of positives particularly alarming,” said Dr. Steven Stack, commissioner of the Department for Public Health. “In the interest of accuracy, we are going to reach out and confirm results with some of the major labs. Even so, this surge in positive cases is a shocking wake-up call. Kentucky has flattened the curve before and it must act immediately and decisively to flatten it again. Please, wear your mask and socially distance.”

Locally, the Bell County Health Department reported Sunday that there were four new positive COVID-19 cases bringing the county’s total number of COVID-19 cases to 156.

Bell County now has 72 active cases, including three, who are hospitalized: a 74-year-old female, a 71-year-old female, and a 76-year-old female.

The Bell County Health Department reported one new positive COVID-19 case Saturday, 13 new cases Friday, eight new cases on Thursday, Wednesday and Tuesday.

A total of 84 people have recovered from COVID-19 in Bell County.

Bell County was one of the last counties in the state to report a positive COVID-19 case with its first positive case reported on May 16. Prior to June 29, Bell County had only reported eight positive COVID-19 cases, and since that time a total of 148 additional cases have been reported.

On July 16, the Bell County Health Department reported its only COVID-19 death, which was an 85-year-old male.

Knox County

The Knox County Health Department reported 15 additional COVID-19 cases Friday, three of whom are children.

“This brings the total number of positives for Knox County to 141. We always want to encourage everyone to wash their hands frequently, wear a mask, cover your cough or sneeze, and stay home if you feel ill. Using proper preventative measures is the only way to slow the spread of COVID-19. All epidemiological tracing and contact information are ongoing with these cases. Any close contacts will be notified by the Knox County Health Department,” said Knox County Health Department Director Rebecca Rains.

On Thursday, July 16, the Knox County Health Department reported two additional deaths of patients at Christian Health Center in Corbin, which raises the total number of COVID-19 deaths from there to seven.

On June 26, 46 patients and eight staff at Christian Health Center in Corbin tested positive for COVID-19. On July 7, it was announced that five of those patients with COVID-19 had died. All had pre-existing health conditions.

On July 13, the Knox County Health Department reported that two additional Christian Health Center patients and one additional employee had tested positive for COVID-19.

In regards to recent new cases, the Knox County Health Department reported three new COVID-19 cases Wednesday afternoon.

Between April 6 and May 30, Knox County reported 10 COVID-19 cases with all 10 patients having fully recovered by June 15. Since June 11, there have been 131 new COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Knox County.

Out of the first 119 Knox County cases, five patients were under the age of 18, 19 patients were ages 18-30, 14 patients were ages 31-40, nine patients were ages 41-50, 12 patients were ages 51-60, 10 patients were ages 61-70, 17 patients were ages 71-80, and 33 patients were over age 80.

A total of 2,241 people have been tested for COVID-19 in Knox County as of July 16.

Whitley County

The Whitley County Health Department reported three new cases of COVID-19 Friday, including one confirmed case and two probable cases. This raises the total number of COVID-19 cases in Whitley County to 57.

The Whitley County Health Department announced Thursday and Wednesday that one additional COVID-19 case had been confirmed each day.

A confirmed case means that a PCR test has identified virus genetic material, which usually comes from nose or mouth swabs, according to a graphic from the Whitley County Health Department.

A probable case is defined as a person meeting clinical criteria and epidemiologic evidence with no confirmatory laboratory testing performed for COVID-19; or a person meeting presumptive laboratory evidence and either clinical criteria or epidemiologic evidence; or a person meeting vital records criteria with no confirmatory laboratory testing performed for COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

As of Friday, Whitley County has 14 active COVID-19 cases out of which two are isolating in the hospital, and 12 are isolating at home.

A total of 43 Whitley County patients have been released from isolation.

Between April 6 and May 17, Whitley County had 11 COVID-19 cases diagnosed, all of whom have been released from isolation.

Since June 8, Whitley County has had 46 additional cases diagnosed.

So far, the majority of Whitley County cases have involved people ages 50 and under.

Out of the 57 Whitley County cases, four patients were under the age of 18, six patients were ages 18-20, 13 patients were ages 21-30, 11 patients were ages 31-40, seven patients were ages 41-50, five patients were ages 51-60, six patients were ages 61-70, and five patients were age 71-80.

Whitley County will reports its cases from Saturday and Sunday on Monday afternoon.

Laurel County

The Laurel County Health Department reported 13 new positive COVID-19 cases on Friday, who are all recovering at home.

The Laurel County Health Department also reported Friday that seven of its hospitalized cases had been released from isolation, leaving six of the 134 active cases hospitalized, and 128 isolating at home.

The Laurel County Health Department reported nine cases Thursday, and eight new cases Wednesday.

Laurel County now has a total of 252 COVID-19 cases out of which a total of four have died, and 114 have recovered.

Between March 24 and June 4, there were 22 COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Laurel County out of which 20 people recovered and two died. Since June 9, there have been an additional 230 cases reported there, according to the Laurel County Health Department.

Out of the 252 Laurel County cases, 23 patients were under the age of 18, 62 patients were ages 18-30, 42 patients were ages 31-40, 34 patients were ages 41-50, 33 patients were ages 51-60, 36 patients were ages 61-70, 14 patients were ages 71-80, and eight patients were over age 80.

A total of 5,956 COVID-19 tests have been performed in Laurel County as of July 13.

Laurel County will report its COVID-19 cases from Saturday and Sunday on Monday afternoon.

Other cases

The Lake Cumberland District Health Department reported McCreary County’s 19th COVID-19 Tuesday evening. The person is an 89-year-old male, who is hospitalized and still symptomatic.

Statewide, there have been 23,161 total positive cases of the COVID-19 virus in Kentucky, and 670 total deaths from the virus. Over 507,000 people in Kentucky have been tested for COVID-19, and more than 5,500 people have reported that they have recovered, according to the latest information on the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s official COVID-19 website.