City still in red as virus cases exceed those from spring
NORWALK — Norwalk remained in “red zone” status for the seventh week in a row as the city’s weekly COVID numbers continue to meet or exceed what was seen this spring, with several hundred new cases diagnosed per week.
The state Department of Health defines a “red zone” community as one having 15 or more COVID cases per 100,000 residents over a two week period. Between Nov. 15 and Nov. 28, the daily cases per 100,000 population in Norwalk was 60.1. Norwalk is one of 160
communities in the state in red alert and was one of the first categorized as such.
Norwalk’s latest wave coronavirus case numbers also continue to exceed what was seen during the first wave in the spring. During the peak of the first wave, Norwalk saw 348 people test positive for coronavirus in a single week in early April. Weekly case numbers declined from there, though officials said the lack of testing and knowledge about the virus may paint a skewed picture of the spread.
“In the spring when COVID-19 first hit, testing was very limited and there were certain requirements, such as needing symptoms, to be tested,” said city spokesperson Josh Morgan. “Due to those restrictions, the numbers may not paint a full or accurate picture of what was actually happening. We now know much more about this virus.”
But the second wave is still very prominent. Case numbers over the past eight weeks have fluctuated between 200 and over 400, with over 5,000 cases now diagnosed since March. From Nov. 8 to Nov. 21, about 851 people living in Norwalk tested positive for coronavirus, with 441 people testing positive between Nov. 15 and Nov. 21, breaking the weekly case record number set in the spring. The test positivity rate at most recent was 9.1 percent, reflecting the average from Nov.15 to Nov. 28).
While cases are higher, the positivity rate is lower than it was in the spring thanks to the widespread availability of tests. The city said they administered about 18,000 tests in November with a 9 percent positivity rate, as opposed to 3,500 in April, about 39 percent of which were positive.
“Ideally from a public health perspective we want to test those with and without symptoms,” said Norwalk Health Director Deanna D’Amore.
“That gives us a more accurate idea of where the community is on transmission. More testing will find more positive cases, including those with and without symptoms, but should also find more negative cases. That is why we not only look at case counts, but the percentage of tests that are positive, which helps determine the level of community transmission.”
Morgan said the city is keeping an eye on numbers for a surge of cases from Thanksgiving where people would have likely gathered and potentially spread the virus while celebrating the holiday.
“Certainly quarantine fatigue is a factor and the prevalence of small gatherings is contributing to a rise in cases,” Morgan said.
Last week, there were at least 276 people who tested positive for coronavirus, with more test results coming in; Norwalk sorts data based on when the person was tested as opposed to when the result comes in. As of Monday, there have been 173 new coronavirus cases reported this week.
There were also four coronavirus-related deaths reported last week and another three on Monday. The last coronavirus-related death before these was on Nov. 18.
As coronavirus cases increase, officials have been urging residents to get tested. The Day Street Community Health Center also began offering free testing in Veteran’s Park from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day. But the demand was so high that testing was closing before noon most days and people were waiting in line for hours for a test.
As a result, the National Guard came last month to assist with testing. Leslie Gianelli, vice president of communications for the Community Health Center, said the National Guard will be helping through the end of March 2021.
“Thanks to their support, the process is flowing more efficiently and wait times are decreasing,” she said.
The city is continuing to run pop-up events with free, drivethru testing; there were two such events held at Brien McMahon High School on Saturday and Monday. Another will be happening on Dec. 10 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Brien McMahon High School. No appointment, insurance, symptoms, or doctor’s note is required to get tested. This event is open to everyone, not just members of the school community.
City officials are also reminding residents they can test negative one day and positive a few days later and should continue to wear masks, wash their hands and socially distance.