The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
COVID-19 cases surge among young adults
Connecticut’s positivity rate continues to soar
The University of Connecticut on Tuesday recorded its largest single-day total of COVID cases as positive results among those in their 20s continue to surge in the state.
On a day when the state’s daily positivity rate reached nearly 7 percent with 1,524 new cases, UConn’s dean of students urged the school’s community to take more precautions.
“Unfortunately, our good health and this good weather may have invited some of us to be more relaxed in our behaviors,” Dean of Students Eleanor JD Daugherty wrote in a letter to the school community.
While UConn’s 34 new cases reported Tuesday mostly consisted of students living off-campus, the school also quarantined five dorms.
The move comes as data from the state Department of Public Health shows patients between the ages of 20 and 29 now comprise about 17 percent of the cumulative number of COVID-19 infections in the state with 13,749 cases.
That stands in sharp contrast to six months ago, when patients aged 50-59 comprised the largest age demographic of cases at around 18 percent of the total at that point.
Many of the latest cases statewide have been linked to small social gatherings, which Gov. Ned
Lamont has recommended should not exceed 10 people.
Gatherings and other social activities have been factors to cases in places like Shelton, where school officials announced Tuesday all students will learn remotely until at least January, and New Canaan, where 15 new cases have quarantined nearly 400 students and staff members.
There were 52 more COVID-19 hospitalizations on Tuesday, bringing the statewide total to 548.
The state’s 14-day positivity rate reached 3.9 percent on Tuesday. The statewide average of daily cases per 100,000 residents over the same period is up to 27.64. The threshold used by Connecticut officials to determine when municipalities are considered “red alert” zones is 15 cases.
In an effort to curb the spread of the virus, Lamont has recommended for residents to be home by 10 p.m.
Sacred Heart and Fairfield universities have each instituted their own nightly curfews for students. Sacred Heart has also raised its alert level for the virus to red and moved all classes online.
Connecticut colleges have grappled with students partying and other violations of COVID-19 rules throughout the semester.
Quinnipiac sent 20 students home for violating COVID-19 restrictions after many of them attended a Halloween party at Anthony’s Ocean View in New Haven. Sacred Heart officials reported in early October that they had suspended 109 students for COVID violations.
Fairfield University reported four new cases as of Sunday, with an active caseload of 137.
Sacred Heart reported 31 new cases as of Monday, with 208 active cases.
Quinnipiac University has moved all classes online and raised its alert level to red. The school reported 84 new cases as of Monday, bringing the total number of active cases to 272.
Cases had remained relatively low at UConn throughout much of October, but new infections have been on the rise as the rest of the state has seen a resurgence of the virus.
“UConn is not immune from the risk of COVID and the dangers it presents to ourselves and those we love,” Daugherty said. “Recent events at nearby universities remind us that large gatherings and failing to follow universal precautions can have a dramatic consequence on our ability to be a Husky family.”
The five UConn dorms that have been quarantined are Belden, Batterson, Tolland, Middlesex, and Werth halls.
Belden Hall residents may be feeling a sense of deja vu — the dorm was previously placed under quarantine in late September.
UConn has also quarantined its residential hall in Stamford.
As the holidays approach, Daugherty said it is “essential” the UConn community take steps to curb the spread of the virus.
Other colleges and universities also continue to report new cases.
Yale University has placed three residential colleges under quarantine. The school reported 46 new cases within the past seven days as of Sunday, for a total of 166 this semester.
Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven last week recorded 30 new cases, bringing the school’s cumulative total to 101 for the semester.
Western Connecticut State University in Danbury reported nine new cases last week, bringing the school’s total to 29 this semester.
The University of Hartford reported eight new cases last week for a total of 72 this semester.
The University of New Haven reported 19 new cases within the past seven days, bringing the number of active cases there to 29 as of Tuesday.
Central Connecticut State University in New Britain reported four new cases among commuter students Sunday and Monday, bringing the cumulative number of cases for the semester to 99.
Trinity College in Hartford reported four new cases last week, bringing the active caseload there to six.