By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
As Cape May County closes in on 20,000 vaccinations given, the numbers of new daily cases and average active cases have dropped substantially compared to peaks in January.
According to reports from the county Department of Health, average daily new cases of the coronavirus had been as high as 75 in the middle of January, but fell to about 31.5 over the past week.
There were six fatalities attributed to the coronavirus in the past week.
On a daily basis, among county residents, there were 24 new cases Sunday, Feb. 14, 15 cases on Feb. 13, 36 on Feb. 12 (10 of them in Ocean City), 33 on Feb. 11, 49 on Feb. 10, 37 on Feb. 9 and 27 on Feb. 8. That averages out to 31.5 a day.
The average number of active cases had swelled to more than 600 among residents in the middle of January, but that has fallen below 400, dropping to 371 as of Feb. 14.
However, this remains a far cry from the past fall, such as September, when there were days with only 6 new cases and the total number of active cases around the county were in the 60s, nearly a tenth of the peak.
The Feb. 14 report showed there were 94 active cases in Middle Township, 81 in Lower Township, 62 in Ocean City and 50 in Upper Township. In the fall, most of those communities were in the single digits.
Other active cases as of Sunday were Wildwood (30), Dennis Township (14) Wildwood Crest (10), North Wildwood (9), Woodbine (7), Sea Isle City (6), Cape May (5), Avalon (2) and West Cape May (1). There were no active cases among residents in Cape May Point, Stone Harbor and West Wildwood.
Overall there were eight active cases in long-term care as of Sunday, including three each in Middle Township and Woodbine and two in Ocean City. There was only one active case among non-residents. That was in Cape May.
There have been a total of 6,436 cases across the county since the pandemic began in March 2020, along with 81 deaths in the various communities and 94 in long-term care facilities.
On Feb. 9, the Department of Health announced the death of five residents – an 86-year-old man from Lower Township, three men from Middle Township ages 80, 81 and 93, and a 95-year-old woman from Upper Township. On Feb. 10, the county reported an 82-year-old woman from Middle Township had died.
As of Saturday, there were a total of 10 COVID-positive patients at Cape Regional Medical Center, a drop from 23 as of Feb. 3, according to the department.
Vaccination
For information on vaccinations, go online to capemaycountynj.gov. To try to schedule an appointment at the closest New Jersey mega site, at the Atlantic City Convention Center, go to vaccination.atlanticare.org. Appointments are scheduled at 3 p.m. Tuesdays, 6 p.m. Thursdays and 9 a.m. Saturdays. People are encouraged to call the state Vaccination Call Center at (855) 568-0545.
Restrictions eased on sporting events
Gov. Phil Murphy eased restrictions on spectators at sporting events, allowing two parents or guardians per player to be in the stands for games or practices as long as the venues remain below 35 percent capacity or 150 people total.
He said that also extends to outdoor sports and on Friday noted he expects conditions will continue to improve so more people may be allowed as spectators during the outdoor spring sports season.