121 cities, towns called at high risk
More than a third of the state’s cities and towns are now at high risk for coronavirus transmission, weekly Department of Public Health data shows, alarming local leaders who are pleading with residents to keep taking the virus seriously.
The number of communities in the high-risk red zone jumped to 121 this week, shattering the previous record high of 77 from last week and continuing an upward trend throughout October.
In Worcester, officials solemnly announced they were once again battling community spread of the virus and called out small gatherings for causing roughly a third of their 236 new cases.
“That is a place we do not want to be,” City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. said.
“It should just be a wake-up call for all of us to really redouble our efforts and be thoughtful and mindful,” the manager said.
The red communities this week include Abington, Acushnet, Agawam, Ashland, Athol, Attleboro, Avon, Bedford, Bell
ingham, Berkley, Beverly, Billerica, Blandford, Bolton, Boston, Boxford, Braintree, Bridgewater, Brimfield, Brockton, Buckland, Canton, Chelmsford, Chelsea, Chicopee, Clinton, Cohasset, Danvers, Dartmouth, Dedham, Dighton, Dover, Dracut, East Bridgewater, East Longmeadow, Everett, Fairhaven, Fall River, Fitchburg, Foxboro, Framingham and Freetown.
They’re joined by Gardner, Georgetown, Gloucester, Granby, Hanover, Hanson, Haverhill, Hingham, Holliston, Holyoke, Hubbardston, Hudson, Kingston, Lakeville, Lawrence, Leicester, Leominster, Littleton, Lowell, Lynn, Lynnfield, Malden, Mansfield, Marlboro, Marshfield, Medford, Mendon, Middleton, Milford, Nahant, Nantucket, New Bedford, Newburyport, North Andover, North Attleboro, Northboro, Norton, Norwood, Palmer, Peabody, Pembroke, Plymouth, Randolph, Raynham, Revere, Rochester and Rockland.
Salisbury, Saugus, Seekonk, Shrewsbury, Somerset, Southboro, Springfield, Swansea, Taunton, Tewksbury, Townsend, Tyngsboro, Wakefield, Waltham, Wareham, Webster, West Boylston, West Bridgewater, West Springfield, Westboro, Westfield, Westport, Westwood, Weymouth, Whitman, Wilmington, Winchester, Winthrop, Woburn, Worcester and Wrentham are also all red this week, with an average daily case rate of at least eight per 100,000 residents over the two-week period ending Saturday.
The statewide average daily incidence rate was 11.8, up from 9.2 last week, putting Massachusetts further into its own red zone.
DPH also released data on COVID-19 clusters for the first time this week — making it one of the few states to do so.
Clusters overwhelming emerged from households, with the state reporting a whopping 2,707 household clusters between Sept. 27 and Oct. 24 that resulted in 6,830 cases.
Another 1,147 household clusters identified before late September were listed as “ongoing,” contributing to another 598 cases.
The next-highest number of clusters and cases came from long-term care facilities that have long been ravaged by the virus.
There were 59 clusters linked to long-term care facilities during the late September to late October period, resulting in 568 infections.
Another 82 clusters were identified as ongoing, with an additional 243 cases.
Child care centers had produced 55 total clusters with 78 cases; organized sports and camps had 28 total clusters and 93 cases; and 29 clusters emerged from restaurants and food courts, resulting in 72 cases.
Local leaders are also concerned about rising infections among those under 30, including in Brockton, where Mayor Robert Sullivan is working with the schools, local clergy and surrounding communities to keep pushing best practices.
While the younger set is recovering from the virus, Brockton’s death toll has now passed 300, which Sullivan called “unacceptable” and said is only “going to get worse before it gets better.”
Clusters overwhelming emerged from households, with the state reporting a whopping 2,707 household clusters between Sept. 27 and Oct. 24 that resulted in 6,830 cases.