Sixth COVID-19 death in Quay County reported

The New Mexico Department of Health last week reported the sixth coronavirus death in Quay County since the pandemic began.

Meanwhile, the volume of COVID-19 cases was falling in the state and the county, though officials cautioned there might be spikes after Christmas and implored residents to refrain from holiday gatherings that would make the spread of the virus more likely.

The latest casualty in the county was a woman in her 70s who was hospitalized, according to an email Wednesday from the agency. Identities of those killed or infected by COVID-19 are not identified.

Three coronavirus deaths also were reported in the county in November, when cases began to skyrocket.

The DOH on Monday reported one confirmed case of coronavirus in the county in the Tucumcari ZIP code. The case was a woman age 70 to 79.

Quay County continues to see an elevated but declining rate of COVID-19 cases in December, with 74 through Monday. A total of 140 cases were reported in the county in November.

The county saw an average of nearly 4.66 cases per day in November. In December through Monday, that had fallen to about 3.52 per day.

The total number of cases in the county rose Monday to 322, with six deaths. A total of 138 people in the county have been deemed by the state as recovered from the virus.

The latest breakdown by ZIP code since the pandemic began is 249 in Tucumcari, 47 in Logan, seven in House, seven in San Jon, four in McAlister, three in Nara Visa, two in Bard and one in Grady (part of the ZIP code extends into the county).

According to the state’s COVID-19 rapid-response database, these confirmed cases were reported in Quay County in the past week:

• Farm Credit office in Tucumcari, one case reported Dec. 14;

• Head Start office in Tucumcari, one case reported Friday;

• Tucumcari Water Department, one case reported Friday.

A typical rapid response consists of isolating positive cases, quarantining close contacts for 14 days, ceasing operations to the extent necessary to isolate affected areas, disinfecting these areas, implementing safety procedures and resuming operations. Typically, operations are ceased for fewer than 24 hours before it is safe to reopen.

The City of Tucumcari’s warehouse and water department at 302 W. Center St. also landed on the state’s COVID-19 Watch List, according to an email Thursday from the Environment Department.

The watch list includes places of employment that have had two or more rapid responses in the last 14 days. There are more than 170 such establishments on the list.

When four or more rapid responses occur at a location within 14 calendar days, the Environment Department refers the establishment to the Department of Health, which evaluates and decides whether it should close. An establishment may be permitted to keep operating if the DOH, after consultation with the Environment Department, determines it is a sole provider of goods or services within a community, or whether they have committed to regular surveillance testing of employees.

In the state, the DOH reported 826 cases on Monday. That was the lowest daily total since Nov. 2.

Like Quay County, New Mexico also was experiencing a general drop-off in its coronavirus caseload. Its peak occurred in late November, with 2,669 cases in its seven-day average. By Monday, that seven-day average had dropped to 1,361.

The total number of cases in New Mexico since the pandemic began rose to nearly 131,000.

A total of nine deaths were reported Monday in New Mexico, raising the total to 2,180 since the pandemic began. Monday’s was the lowest count since Nov. 15.

A total of 796 people in the state were hospitalized with the disease Monday, a number that generally has been trending downward.

During her regular health briefing Thursday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said recent improvements in the state’s and counties’ COVID-19 caseloads was “incredibly encouraging,” but she acknowledged being “a little nervous about Christmas.”

She said she expected the numbers to climb again after the holiday because family gatherings would make the spread of the virus more likely. She asked residents to reconsider and use videoconferencing or phone calls instead to socialize with family members during Christmas.

In the Amarillo metro area, more than 4,800 active cases were reported Monday, with a 25% hospitalization rate. Both numbers had been falling in recent days.

In the U.S., 18 million confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported through Monday since the pandemic began, with more than 319,000 deaths.