Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By ZACHARY MARANO
HOUGHTON — As February nears, the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department reported a decrease in the COVID-19 cases rate on Thursday. However, the updated numbers continue to show that the risk of transmission is high.
“The good news is that the new case count and case rate per 100,000 population both dropped by more than 10 percent from last week,” the update says. “The bad news is that both are still extremely high and for the eighth week in a row we’ve had more than three people in the western U.P. die with COVID-19.”
In total, five people died in the western U.P. counties in the past week: one person in Gogebic, one person in Houghton, one person in Keweenaw and two people in Ontonagon. Across the five-county region, there was also a total of 846 new COVID-19 cases: 100 cases in Baraga County, 182 cases in Gogebic, 513 cases in Houghton, 23 cases in Keweenaw and 28 in Ontonagon.
There have been 3,372 new cases and 19 deaths so far this year and 13,513 cases and 242 deaths in the western U.P. in total since the WUPHD started posting COVID-19 pandemic updates in 2020. This does not include positive at-home test results.
The case rates per 100,000 population are 1,150.7 cases in Baraga County, 1,150.2 cases in Gogebic, 1,399.3 cases in Houghton, 1,046.4 cases in Keweenaw and 444.6 cases in Ontonagon, for a total of 1,214.3 cases per 100,000 population in the western U.P. The total case rate was 1,535.8 last week, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider a case rate of 100 or more to be a high risk of transmission.
The health department is also offering free COVID-19 testing on a weekly basis in Ironwood, L’Anse and Hancock. The clinics are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesdays in Ironwood, on Mondays in L’Anse and on Mondays through Fridays in Hancock. Testing is located inside the memorial building on 213 Marquette St. in Ironwood, on 303 Baraga Ave. in L’Anse and on 821 Water St. in Hancock. No appointments are necessary and all of the services offered at these clinics are free.
The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and WUPHD will host a youth vaccination clinic at the Niiwin Akeaa Center on 111 Beartown Road in Baraga from 2 to 6 p.m. on Thursday. The clinic will be open to children ages 5 to 11. All children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and bring a vaccination card if they have one. Appointments are encouraged. To schedule an appointment, call 906-353-3211 or 906-353-4530.
Iron County Public Health in Wisconsin has not posted a COVID-19 update since Jan. 19, when there was a total of 1,296 cases and 45 deaths in the county with 227 confirmed and probable cases and one death so far this year.
There will be a Pfizer walk-in clinic at the Iron County Health Department on 210 5th Avenue N. in Hurley from 1 to 3 p.m. on Feb. 4, where first, second and booster does will be available to everyone ages 12 and up and five months past their second dose.
PCR tests are also available at the Iron County Health Department. For testing, register at register.covidconnect.wi.gov/en-US and go to the department between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Monday to Friday.
