Oak Ridge Today

After falling in August, new COVID cases have plateaued

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A graph shows confirmed new cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Friday, Sept. 25, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

After falling in August, the average number of new daily cases of COVID-19 appears to have plateaued in Anderson County.

But there is at least one complication in the data. More than 30 cases reported in Anderson County in mid-September had been assigned to a different county earlier, or the the county of residence had not yet been reported, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.

So, for at least a few days, the data seemed to include an unusually high number of new cases per day (20-29 new cases per day on September 10 and 11, compared to one to six new cases per day other days that week).

Since then, though, the average number of new cases per day has remained about the same, in a range between 11.1 and 13.7 new cases per day. Fourteen new cases were reported Saturday.

The seven-day average number of new cases in Anderson County had fallen to 5.4 per day on September 1, according to calculations by Oak Ridge Today. That was a low that the county hadn’t had since early July, before new case growth peaked later that month.

But since then it’s gone back up to an average of more than 10 new cases per day, where it appears to have plateaued. It’s not clear why.

Anderson County has reported five deaths due to COVID-19 this month. That’s more than one-third of the 13 deaths reported in the county since the pandemic began March 20. Two of the deaths were reported by state health officials in the past few days, on Thursday and Friday.

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New daily COVID case average falls to early July level

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A graph shows confirmed new cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

The daily average of new COVID-19 cases in Anderson County the past week fell to a level last seen in early July, about five new cases per day.

Last week’s average of 5.4 new cases per day is about a 40 percent drop from the average nine new cases reported per day during the previous week.

It’s the third straight week of a decline in the average number of new cases per day in Anderson County.

Although it’s falling, the seven-day average remains higher than it was in late June, before the case growth started to accelerate in the county.

The highest seven-day average, as calculated by Oak Ridge Today, was in late July, when Anderson County averaged more than 24 new cases of COVID-19 per day. July appears to have been the worst month of the pandemic so far.

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New COVID case average fluctuates, hits recent daily lows

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A graph shows confirmed new cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

The daily average of new COVID-19 cases in Anderson County this past week was about the same as it was two weeks ago, roughly nine new cases per day.

But the number of new daily cases fell to three and two on Monday and Tuesday. Those are the lowest numbers of new daily cases in Anderson County since early July.

There have been two more deaths in Anderson County reported due to COVID-19 in the past week. Eight people have now died from COVID-19 in the county, according to the Tennessee Department of Health.

And there have been two more hospitalizations. A total of 34 patients have been hospitalized for COVID-19 since the pandemic began in Anderson County on March 20.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the county rose to 841 on Tuesday.

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New COVID-19 daily case average drops again in Anderson County

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A graph shows confirmed new cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

Although it has climbed back up some, the average number of new cases of COVID-19 per day in Anderson County fell by about 50 percent in the week that ended Tuesday.

It was the second consecutive week of a smaller number of new cases per day, on average, of COVID-19 in Anderson County.

It’s not clear what led to the drop in new cases per day or whether it might be related to the more widespread use of masks, including at businesses that started requiring them in the second half of July.

In the week that ended Tuesday, August 11, there was an average of 9.7 new cases of COVID-19 per day in Anderson County. That’s a level not seen since the first half of July, after the growth in COVID-19 cases had started to accelerate in the county.

The average 9.7 new cases per day last week was about 50 percent fewer cases per day than the average 18.6 new cases reported each day in the previous week, the seven-day period that ended Tuesday, August 4.

But since Tuesday, the average number of cases per day has climbed back up a bit to 12.2.

The highest average number of new cases per day, as tracked by Oak Ridge Today, was in the week ending Tuesday, July 28, when there were about 24.7 new cases per day. July appears to have been the worst month of the pandemic in Anderson County so far.

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New daily COVID case average declines in Anderson County

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A graph shows confirmed new cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Thursday, Aug. 6, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

The seven-day average of new daily cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County fell Tuesday, a reversal of a trend that had been in place since at least late June.

Still, the average number of new daily cases remained high, and it was higher than it has been in all but the previous week. And it’s not clear yet if the downward trend will continue.

The most recent seven-day average, in the week ending Tuesday, was 18.6 new COVID-19 cases per day. The highest it’s been, the week before, was 24.7. In late June, the county had an average of 3.43 new cases of COVID-19 per day.

Another trend that has reversed, at least for now: The number of active cases in the county fell four days in a row. It was 255 on Thursday. That was down more than 30 cases from a peak of 289 active cases on Sunday. Active cases are total cases minus recoveries and deaths.

In other potentially good news, the daily positivity rate, which measures the percentage of people who test positive for COVID-19 out of those who are tested, has fallen for at least two weeks.

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Oak Ridge lab accredited to analyze air, surfaces for COVID-19 virus

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Edward Sobek, president of Assured Bio Labs LLC reviews COVID-19 analysis systems before the processing of samples. (Submitted photo)

An environmental microbiology laboratory in Oak Ridge is the first in the United States to receive accreditation to analyze air and surfaces for the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19, a press release said.

Assured Bio Labs LLC was granted accreditation for testing environmental air and surfaces for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, by the American Industrial Hygiene Association’s Laboratory Accreditation Program, the press release said. AIHA announced the accreditation in a tweet on June 25.

As businesses bring employees back to work, COVID-19 data for touch points and air is essential to protect workers and the public, the press release said. Accreditation ensures the quality of laboratory analysis.

“Since March, we have been running samples for local municipalities and for New York City essential businesses in the financial district,” said Edward A. Sobek, president of Assured Bio Labs LLC. In April, the lab began providing COVID-19 surface and air testing for health care facilities in the Northeast as they converted COVID-19 patient rooms into standard rooms.

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Staff member at ORHS tests positive for COVID-19

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Oak Ridge High School

A staff member who was at Oak Ridge High School on Friday has tested positive for COVID-19, Oak Ridge Schools said Sunday.

The school system learned of the positive diagnosis on Saturday.

“Having this report Saturday morning allowed us to implement a 24-hour closure so we could thoroughly disinfect the building on Saturday,” Superintendent Bruce Borchers said in a letter to families. A second disinfectant fogging of the full building occurred on Sunday, Borchers said.

It’s the sixth overall COVID-19 case in Oak Ridge Schools and the fifth since July 15.

The other cases since July 15 involved a staff member who had been at Jefferson Middle School and ORHS, a staff member at JMS, a student at ORHS band camp, and an instructor at ORHS band camp.

In an earlier case in April, a staff member who had been volunteering at the school system’s food distribution sites tested positive for COVID-19.

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Updated: Anderson County has more than 500 COVID cases, reports two more deaths

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A graph shows total cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Tuesday, July 28, 2020. Another 36 cases were reported Wednesday. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

Note: This story was last updated at 4 p.m. We have added some of Wednesday’s COVID-19 statistics to this story, which initially focused on Tuesday’s numbers.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Anderson County rose to 500 on Tuesday, and the county has reported its fourth and fifth deaths due to the new coronavirus.

Three of the county’s five deaths have been in the past two weeks. Two of those have been in the past week.

On Wednesday, Anderson County reported another 36 new cases of COVID-19—just below the all-time high of 39—and the total number of cases climbed to 536.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the county has more than doubled in 13 days. There were 252 COVID-19 cases in Anderson County on July 16.

The 536 cases reported Wednesday means about 0.7 percent of the county’s roughly 77,000 residents have been infected with COVID-19.

A graph shows active cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Tuesday, July 28, 2020. Another 30 active cases were reported Wednesday. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

The number of active cases (total cases minus recoveries and deaths) continued to increase significantly, rising to 271 on Wednesday, according to data published by the Tennessee Department of Health. (The number of active cases had been 241 on Tuesday.) Active cases increased by 118 in Anderson County in one week. They have more than doubled in the past two weeks.

The county reported a record-high 39 new daily cases twice in the past week, first on Thursday and then again on Monday.

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Nineteen test positive for COVID-19 at The Groves

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The Groves at Oak Ridge, an assisted living facility on Emory Valley Road, is pictured above on Friday evening, July 24, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Nineteen people, including 17 residents and two staff members, have tested positive for COVID-19 at The Groves, an assisted living center on Emory Valley Road, an executive said Monday.

Six of the residents are in the hospital in stable condition, said Hollie Bailey, a registered nurse and regional director of operations and clinical services for Navion Senior Solutions. The Groves is part of Navion Senior Solutions.

One of the residents has died.

The other 10 residents are in self-quarantine. They have not exhibited any symptoms, Bailey said.

One of the staff members who tested positive has recovered, and the other remains in quarantine, Bailey said.

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COVID-19 cases triple in county, hospitalizations double

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A graph showing total cases of COVID-19 in Anderson County through Tuesday, July 21, 2020. (Image courtesy Tennessee COVID-19 Case Tracking Coronavirus-19 Outbreak Response Experts (CORE-19) at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville)

The number of COVID-19 cases has tripled in Anderson County since early July, and the number of hospitalizations has doubled.

Anderson County had 105 total cases of COVID-19 on July 2, when the growth in cases started to accelerate. On Tuesday, it had more than three times as many cases, 327.

The number of active cases—total cases minus recoveries and deaths—has increased even faster. The number of active cases in Anderson County on July 2 was 32. On Tuesday, the county had about five times as many active cases, 154.

The number of total cases and active cases—now 327 and 154, respectively—have both increased about 50 percent in one week.

Anderson County hospitalizations increased to 21 on Tuesday. That’s up from 10 on July 5, meaning more than half of the county’s hospitalizations have occurred in less than three weeks. Seven of the hospitalizations have been in the past week.

Anderson County has reported a third death due to COVID-19, the first since June 4. Joe Lenhard, a former U.S. Department of Energy executive and a founder of the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, died of COVID-19 on Friday at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge.

Separately, an Oak Ridge employee who worked at the Y-12 National Security Complex and lived in Maryville died of COVID-19 on Wednesday at Parkwest Medical Center in Knoxville.

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Updated: Former DOE research director, CROET founder dies at 91

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Joe Lenhard, right, is pictured with Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch at the dedication of Main Street Oak Ridge in July 2016. (Photo courtesy Warren Gooch)

Note: This story was last updated at 11:10 a.m. July 19.

Joe Lenhard, a former U.S. Department of Energy research director and founder of the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, died Friday of COVID-19, a family member said. He was 91.

Lenhard died Friday evening at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, his daughter Andrea Lenhard said in a Facebook post.

My father, Joseph Lenhard, died Friday evening at MMC of Covid. He went quickly. Rest in peace, Daddy. You were always my hero.

Posted by Andie Lenhard on Friday, July 17, 2020

Lenhard was a research director for the U.S. Department of Energy in Oak Ridge. He had oversight of DOE research activities and served as the federal contracting officer for major federal facilities in the city, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, according to his LinkedIn page. He worked for DOE for about 32 years, from 1957 to 1989.

Lenhard served as president of the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce in 1992, and he was chair of the East Tennessee Economic Council in 1993 and 1994.

He helped found CROET in 1994, and he was the founding chairman. CROET helps find ways to re-use former federal property, not just real estate but also equipment and other federal assets. A tribute to Lenhard’s service is noted on a plaque in the Horizon Center Industrial Park in west Oak Ridge.

His daughter Andrea said her father loved the natural world, and she became a biologist and veterinarian because of him. Her father used to take them on long rambles in the woods, Andrea said, and he would pick up animals like snakes and frogs and tell the children what he knew about them.

“He loved nature, and that was very infectious,” she said.

Andrea said Oak Ridge was very important to her father.

“He always wanted to promote Oak Ridge and take care of Oak Ridge,” she said. “He was very devoted to the city.”

Lenhard could often be found walking in local grocery stores. He was very conscious of his health, Andrea said, and he would walk every day at stores that included Walmart, Kroger, and Food City. He would sometimes stop to talk to people, including an Oak Ridge Today reporter.

Andrea said her father was a lot of fun, full of life, and he loved everybody.

She recalled the trips her family used to take to Norris Lake on weekends when she was a child—playing in the water, climbing trees, telling jokes—and she said her father spent as much time as he could with his grandchildren as well.

A statement from the family of Lenhard’s daughter Michele said Joe Lenhard was very supportive of higher education.

“He gave substantial sums of money to the University of Tennessee and Roane State Community College,” the statement said. “Roane State dedicated a room to Joseph Lenhard for his outstanding contributions. Joe came from an economically disproportionate background and saw the benefit of higher education. He wanted to provide educational opportunity for the young people of East Tennessee.”

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Kroger will require face masks starting Wednesday

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The Kroger Marketplace at Westcott Center in Oak Ridge is pictured above on April 4, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Kroger stores will require all customers in all stores to wear a face mask starting Wednesday, July 22.

The change is in response to the increase in COVID-19 cases across the country, Kroger said.

“We are taking this extra step now because we recognize additional precautions are needed to protect our country,” the company said.

Citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Kroger said there are three actions that have been scientifically proven to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Besides wearing a face covering, they include frequent hand washing and social distancing (generally staying at least six feet away from people outside your home).

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