Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RICHARD JENKINS
BAYFIELD, Wis. — The Bayfield County Health Department announced Thursday the first case of COVID-19, or the coronavirus, in the county has been confirmed.
The individual who tested positive developed symptoms shortly after traveling to a location where community spread of COVID-19 was happening, according to the health department.
The department has reviewed self-quarantine procedures with the individual since the test.
The department is in daily contact with the individual to monitor the symptoms and to give the support needed to be able to isolate at home.
The county health department and Wisconsin Department of Health Services are responsible for identifying and contacting anyone who may have been in close contact with a person who has COVID-19. Those people are asked to quarantine themselves for 14 days from their exposure. Those with symptoms are tested for COVID-19.
The departments are also responsible for follow-up testing to determine when it is safe for people to leave isolation, as well as working with clinicians regarding testing and preparing the state for the spread of COVID-19.
There have been no confirmed cases in Iron County.
In Michigan, the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department said there continue to be zero confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the five counties it serves — including Gogebic and Ontonagon counties.
There have been just over 50 people tested in the five counties as of Thursday, according to the department.
“Results have been slow to come from both the state and commercial labs, as testing resources are stretched thin,” the department’s health officer, Kate Beer, said in a news release. “The state has prioritized the processing of tests for people that are known contacts of confirmed cases, people who are symptomatic with a travel history to a region with widespread transmission, healthcare related workers, and those with severe symptoms requiring hospitalization with no other identified illness.”
The health department is also working to bring needed personal protective equipment — such as gloves, gowns and masks — to the region.
Initial deliveries are expected in the next few days, according to the department, and high risk candidates — such as health care workers who may be exposed to patients — will be prioritized to receive the PPE.
Health departments in both Wisconsin and Michigan encourage residents to take steps to help prevent the spread of illness, including frequent hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes, avoiding touching the face, staying home when sick, practicing social distancing and avoiding large crowds.
