AN ‘OUTBREAK’ OF COVID CASES
▶ Establishment where people ‘congregate’ behind latest infections ▶ ‘I can look out my window and see everything going on there… nobody ever wears masks’
Rappahannock County this week has witnessed a significant increase in its number of con- firmed COVID-19 cases, which local health director Dr. Wade Kartchner classifies as“an outbreak .”
“We've had an outbreak—defined as 2 or more cases within an incubation period — in an establishment where people have congregated,” the Health Director of the Rappahannock/Rapidan Health District (RRHD) told this newspaper.
Four new coronavirus cases were reported on Tuesday, another on Wednesday, raising the number to 11 new cases in Rappahannock County in six days — 31 cases all told in a county that previously experienced relatively few COVID infections in comparison to surrounding areas.
Two of the newly infected Rappahannock residents have required hospitalization, according to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH).
Dr. Kartchner declined to pinpoint the establishment where he said the outbreak supposedly originated.
“We don’t identify the facility, besides the recent exceptions of long-term care facilities, per VDH policy and Virginia Code,” he said.
“Cases have been identified and contact tracing is underway on all contacts,” he assured this newspaper. “RRHD is working with the facility to mitigate further spread.”
One local woman posted to social media in recent days that her grandmother’s place of worship, which she identified as Massanova Pentecostal Church in Castleton, held nightly services in late June and in her words did not practice Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines surrounding the wearing of protective masks and social distancing.
Her grandmother has since tested positive for the coronavirus, the woman said.
Dr. Kartchner, however, would not say if the outbreak he referred to is centered around the Massanova church or any other places of worship. Messages left with the church and separately with its elders were not returned.
“You knew it was going to happen sooner than later,” said Robert Franklin, who lives directly next door to the Massanova Pentecostal Church located at 691 Aaron Mountain Road. “I can look out my window and see everything going on there . . . nobody ever wears masks, they’re shaking hands, hugging each other. You wonder, why are they not practicing the guidelines?”
Franklin, 65, added the church recently hosted a “revival, with out of town people coming in here for almost two weeks. And they had church every single night . . . the place was packed.”
He said the woman who posted her concerns about the Massanova church “was right on the money.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Kartchner said it’s not just Rappahannock County experiencing a rise in cases of COVID-19. “We are seeing an uptick in cases in the health district,” which encompasses Rappahannock, Fauquier, Culpeper, Orange and Madison.
“This is likely due to everyone being out and about, interacting with others. This is a good thing, but if done in a less thoughtful manner interacting brings with it consequences that we may find harder to control.”
Federal and state health officials are advising residents to remain home as much as possible and think hard before entering indoor public spaces — including churches — where transmission is proven to spread more easily.
“Limiting close face-to-face contact with others is the best way to reduce the spread of coronavirus disease,” said the Warrenton-based doctor. “Social distancing . . . means keeping a safe space between yourself and other people who are not from your household. To practice social or physical distancing, stay at least 6 feet — about 2 arms’ length — from other people who are not from your household in both indoor and outdoor spaces.”
He also stressed that people need to wear masks whenever in public settings, which isn’t always the case in Rappahannock County, as witnessed at various business places this week.
Dr. Kartchner said to be extra careful when running errands: “Only visit stores selling household essentials in person when you absolutely need to, and stay at least 6 feet away from others who are not from your household while shopping and in lines.
“If possible, use drive-thru, curbside pick-up, or delivery services to limit face-to-face contact with others.”