State Passes 79,000 Cases

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Death Toll Nearing 1,000

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  • State Passes 79,000 Cases Death Toll Nearing 1,000
    State Passes 79,000 Cases Death Toll Nearing 1,000
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As of Sept. 22, there were 79,072 confirmed cases of the Covid-19 virus in the state, up 1,164 in the last day, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health. There were 14 more deaths reported, three in the last 24 hours. This brings the death toll to 962. There are currently 628 residents hospitalized with the virus.

In Blaine County, according to emergency management officials, there are 23 active cases. The active cases are in Watonga, with 12; Canton, with three; Geary, with three; Longdale with two; and Okeene with three.

The cases are noted by zip code, so those ill may not live inside the city limits, just in the vicinity.

There are 6,856,884 cases cumulative reported nationally, up 52,070 since the last numbers were released by Johns Hopkins University. There have been 199,865 deaths, up 356 since last report. Active cases in the U.S. tally at 4,041,070, up 26,436 while recoveries stand at 2,65,949, up 25,278 since the last report was made.

Blaine County was one of the sites for free drive through testing for educators. The testing was provided at the Blaine County Fairgrounds from 3-6 p.m. Sept. 21. There was no requirement for insurance or cost involved. The testing was sponsored by the Oklahoma State Department of Health and the State Department of Education. Results were anticipated to take 2-3 days.

While pharmaceutical companies race to develop a vaccine against the virus, something of a silver lining has appeared from the measures taken to prevent the spread of the virus.

Seasonal flu spread was curtailed to numbers that seemed to surprise even researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. The combination of more vigilant hand washing and sanitizing, improved cleaning of surfaces, social distancing, shelter at home and wearing of masks in public reduced the number of flu cases to a level not seen in many years.

Connie Burcham can be reached at Editor@WatongaRepublican.com