Local virus numbers jump

SANDUSKY — Erie County is dealing with a big jump in COVID-19 hospitalizations and new cases with many new infections reported among children. The Erie County Health Department, which released the new weekly numbers Tuesday, also reported two new deaths and reported new outbreaks in four locations. Firelands Regional Medical Center reported Tuesday it had 31 COVID-19 patients being treated at the hospital, up from 24 patients reported on Sept. 7. It said 22 of the 31 are unvaccinated. While 31 is a large number, it still isn't as high as the top number during last winter's surge. "Our highest COVID-19 inpatient volume was back in January. We had 50 COVID-19 positive inpatients at one time," said Jordan Sternberg, a spokesman for Firelands. "There are 31 inpatients at Firelands who have tested positive for COVID-19 today. Eleven of our inpatients are receiving critical care due to COVID-19. Four of our COVID-19 positive inpatients are on a ventilator. Patients may be admitted for different reasons, therefore they may be placed across several units, such as the COVID unit or the ICU," Sternberg said. Sternberg then gave the Register a more detailed breakdown of the COVID-19 patients at the hospital, showing that unvaccinated patients tend to be the sickest. All four of the patients on ventilators are unvaccinated. Of the 11 in critical care, nine are unvaccinated. Ashley Franks, the epidemiologist for the Erie County Health Department, said what the hospital is reporting also is showing up in the community. "Our vaccinated individuals are the ones with the mildest symptoms," Franks said. The vaccinated patients with mild symptoms often say they only got tested because they knew they had been exposed to the virus, Franks said. The health department also reported 305 new COVID-19 cases. That's up from the 205 new cases that were announced a week ago. And among those 305 new cases, 27% were younger than 18, putting them in the school-age population, Franks said. "That's the highest we've seen since the pandemic started," Franks said. "We are seeing a lot of household spread affecting schools in the same district," Franks said. But some spread also apparently is taking place at school, she said. As of today, Sandusky Schools is the only district in Erie County that requires students to wear masks at school. Sandusky began requiring the masks on Monday. Franks also reported an outbreak at a condo in Huron and in three long-term care or assisted living facilities. A condo association at Lakefield Manor in Huron had a party at the end of August, and at least 10 COVID-19 cases have been reported in connection with that, Franks said. Outbreaks also have been reported at Kingston of Vermilion, at Concord Care in Perkins Township and at The Meadows at Osborn Park, the county-owned nursing home in Huron. Kingston and Concord have cases among residents, while The Meadows has three cases among staff, Franks said. The two new deaths announced Tuesday brings the total COVID-19 death toll for Erie County up to 220. Erie County has had a total of 9,735 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began. Nationally, the latest COVID-19 surge is showing signs of receding, with cases and deaths trending downward. The CDC reports that the seven-day moving average for deaths was 1,305 on Sept. 2 and 1,134 on Sept. 11. New daily cases stood at a seven-day moving average of 158,332 on Aug. 30 and stood at 117,622 on Sept. 12. But in Ohio, new cases and hospitalizations continue to go up. Ohio reported 344 new hospitalizations Tuesday versus a 21-day average of 197 a day. And state officials reported 7,325 new cases, versus a 21-day average of 5,888. Hospitalizations have been rising steadily in Ohio. On Tuesday 3,494 people were reported hospitalized for COVID-19 in Ohio.