Muscogee County reports largest 24-hour increase in COVID-19 cases since start of pandemic
Muscogee County reported 128 new coronavirus cases Tuesday — the largest 24-hour increase since the beginning of the pandemic, according to data analyzed by the Ledger-Enquirer.
Tuesday’s increase is more than double the previous high of 60 new cases reported on June 9. As of June 23, 1,341 coronavirus cases and 39 COVID-19 related deaths have been confirmed in Muscogee County.
Total COVID-19 infections in Columbus have more than doubled since June 2.
Muscogee ranks 52 of 159 Georgia counties for coronavirus cases per capita with 699.8 infections per 100,000 people, higher than similar-sized areas such as Augusta-Richmond County, Macon-Bibb County and Savannah’s Chatham County.
Total COVID-19 hospitalizations have increased in Columbus as well. As of Tuesday, 200 COVID-19 positive Muscogee residents have been hospitalized, up by 29 since Thursday. This measure is likely an underestimation of actual hospitalizations because it doesn’t capture hospitalizations that occur after a confirmed case is reported, state health officials have said.
It’s currently unclear what contributing factors led to Tuesday’s increase. The cases have not yet been tied to specific gatherings or events, Pam Kirkland, a spokesperson for the West Central Health District, said in a phone interview Wednesday.
The department, based in Columbus, has increased its COVID-19 testing capacity. But increased testing alone does not account for Columbus’ rise in infections, Kirkland said.
“I don’t know why or where these positives are coming from,” she said. “We took samples from 200 people (Tuesday). ...It’s just baffling. The only thing I feel like you can contribute it to is people not following the guidelines.”
Nancy Nydam, a spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Public Health, said “there have been some small outbreaks” in Columbus when asked about Muscogee’s increasing cases last week. But, she added, that there were not a “big number” of people under investigation for possible infections associated with those outbreaks.
Attempts to contact Nydam Tuesday were unsuccessful before publication.
On Tuesday, Georgia reported 67,675 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 2,687 deaths. The Georgia health department reported 23,235 new viral tests Tuesday, but the agency does not provide a county-by-county breakdown of coronavirus testing. The department also doesn’t provide the number of recovered patients.
This story was originally published June 23, 2020 at 6:34 PM.