COVID-19 surges in Middle Georgia
MACON, Ga. -- Right now there’s a rapid spike of cases in Middle Georgia and the entire state, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.
Late last week Georgia hit a record-breaking increase of 4500 new cases in just 24 hours.
According to a New York Times created database, Georgia recorded a 245% increase in cases since April 24th. That's the day gyms, barbershops, and nail salons were allowed to reopen.
On April 24, Bibb County reported 245 cases. Now, June 13, that number has increased more than 7 times to 1,725.
In Houston County, the department of public health reported 205 cases, on April 24. That number has rose to 1,003.
Out of 159 counties in Georgia, Bibb county ranks 16th for highest number of positive cases. Houston is 23rd.
Michael Hokanson with the Department of public health says our area is reaching new heights in hospitalizations.
In April there were 62 people hospitalized with COVID related illness in Bibb county. 81 days later that number is 311. That’s about 3 people hospitalized a day.
"With just looking at what’s going on right now, chances are we will continue to see a rise. It’s something that’s been happening for a couple of weeks at this point, chances are it’s not going to slow down," Hokanson says.
He says health officials expected a rise in numbers after reopening but couldn’t have predicted the surge that our area and the state is seeing right now.
While this increase may seem like a second wave, Hokanson explains that Middle Georgia never reached a low impact of the virus in our community. Georgia and the country is still in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It’s a variety of factors that all work together to contribute to these new numbers,” Hokanson tells WGXA.
One of which is human behavior. Hokanson says humans are social by nature and are growing restless of social distancing guidelines.
Another contribution could be testing. There is much more testing available in Georgia than there was in April. Hokanson claims that the rate of positive cases would not still be increasing if the high number of cases was only because of testing.