BROOKINGS – The state is reporting 94 new positive coronavirus cases and three new deaths in South Dakota Thursday.
None of the new cases are in Brookings County.
Brookings County cases remain at 86 positive tests (no change), and 69 of those people have recovered, with 17 active cases. There have been 1,913 negative tests in Brookings County as of Thursday, and four people in the county have been hospitalized at some point, the state reported. There have been no deaths here.
Brookings County remains in the “substantial” community spread category. Substantial community spread means there are five-plus cases of community-acquired COVID-19 in a county or a distinct group of cases in a single area.
The number of South Dakotans who have tested positive for COVID-19 rose to 7,336 as of midday Thursday, according to the South Dakota Department of Health.
Of the 7,336 statewide cases, 904 are classified as active (up by 40 from Wednesday). As of Thursday, 6,331 people have recovered (51 new), 718 people have been hospitalized at some point (nine new), 61 people are currently hospitalized (up by seven), and 101 people have died.
There have been 79,974 total negative tests (990 new) in South Dakota.
The new deaths, three women, are being reported in Pennington, Todd and Yankton counties. The age ranges of the deceased are two 60-69 years old and one in the 80-plus years old category.
Increases in positive cases Thursday included, but are not limited to, three in Brule County, five in Buffalo, four in Codington, 15 in Dewey, five in Lincoln, five in Lyman, 17 in Minnehaha, five in Oglala Lakota and 10 in Pennington.
The counties with the highest total case counts are Minnehaha (3,723), Pennington (616), Beadle (551), Lincoln (381) and Brown (352).
The state Department of Health generally does not identify the specific communities within a county where cases are located, or a business, event or setting that may be the source of a surge to protect patient confidentiality.
Only a few exceptions are made, such as clusters when there are 40 or more cases identified in a single workplace/setting. The DOH will also issue a public health notice when an employee or patron of a business is unable to identify persons they were in close contact with (15 or more minutes within 6 feet or less) while able to transmit the virus.
No public health notices regarding specific businesses have been issued in Brookings County so far.
The actual number of infections in the state is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested and studies suggest people can be infected without feeling sick.
The figures released by the state Department of Health do not include individuals who are asymptomatic or have symptoms of the coronavirus but are not being tested.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
Learn more at www.covid.sd.gov.
