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WHEELING -- Ohio County has seen an active week of rising COVID-19 diagnoses, with 15 new cases being reported across the county since Friday, 11 of which occurred at West Liberty University.
In a letter sent to students Wednesday, WLU President Stephen Greiner said the university reported 11 new cases since Friday, which he pointed out was a half-percent positivity rate -- "which is low," he stated. The afflicted students were sent home to recover in isolation.
"We encourage all our students and staff to remain safe by avoiding large gatherings and parties and to wear your mask in any circumstance where social distancing is difficult. Personal responsibility is vital to stop the spread," Greiner stated.
Ohio County Health Administrator Howard Gamble said that three other COVID-19 cases were detected in workers at the Wheeling Hospital's Continuous Care Center, two of whom live in Ohio County.
He was not immediately sure where the other patient resided. Two other cases were detected among the community, bringing the total to 15 active cases out of 312 total, four probable cases and six deaths.
Gamble said the increase in cases moves the county up to 'yellow' on the state's County Alert Map, but that the map mostly focuses on how school districts are to operate. 'Yellow' indicates 3.1 to 9.9 cases per 100,000 people, while orange and red indicate 10 to 24.9 and more than 25 cases per 100,000, respectively. Currently, Monongalia County, home of West Virginia University is the only 'red' county, while Pocahontas, Monroe, Fayette, Kanawha, Putnam, Wayne, Mingo, and Logan counties are in the 'orange.'
"Not until you get to orange and red does it make major impacts on education," Gamble said. "We did give the schools advance notice on Monday that we were beginning to see an uptick in cases from West Liberty University, and the community. As a result, be forewarned, we can move color-wise very very quickly."
Ohio County Schools spokesman Gabe Wells said the district would defer to Gamble's direction, and that no changes at the county level were currently being made.
Gamble said the COVID-19 spread "kind of represents what (the health department sees) in a week," aside from the spike from West Liberty and the Wheeling Hospital facility. Classes at West Liberty began Aug. 15.
West Liberty officials said cleaning and sanitation is being done to disinfect areas where people who tested positive have been. They also encouraged the use of facemasks, social distancing and good hand washing.
"Our typical number load of anywhere between two and five, we have that, but you add on top of that the two long term care, … and (with) what we're seeing at West Liberty, we're going to change colors very quickly."
Gamble said the cases originating from West Liberty were mild in nature, rather than serious or severe. Across the board, though, Gamble observed that fewer people were being tested and found to be asymptomatic. He mused that many people, when interviewed, initially reported no symptoms, but after light prodding said they displayed some signs of the disease.
"You'll ask, do you have any symptoms? And people say, 'I don't have any symptoms at all! I'm fine!' And you keep talking, and they'll go, 'Aside from my runny nose, and the fact that I lost my (sense of) taste and smell... Beside those, I'm fine. ... A lot of people, in their mind, think (they) the symptoms have to be severe, they have to have a fever, night sweats, coughing."