COVID-19 infections still rising in Quay

Quay County last week continued to see exponential growth in number of coronavirus cases with 31, including eight confirmed by the state’s Department of Health on Friday.

That compared to 14 cases in the previous week and two the week before that. The surge was the latest sign the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 was spreading fast — the vast majority of cases among the unvaccinated.

Last week, cases were reported in these ZIP codes: 22 in Tucumcari, five in Logan, four in San Jon and one in Bard.

Vickie Gutierrez, administrator at Trigg Memorial Hospital in Tucumcari, confirmed in an email Friday her facility had seen more positive COVID-19 cases in its clinic and emergency room over the last week. She said the number of breakthrough cases — or those infected by the virus who have been fully vaccinated — was “very small.”

The county's overall case total rose to 588, with 11 deaths, since the pandemic began in spring 2020. There was a discrepancy of one between the overall total and the total last week in Quay County ZIP codes.

The breakdown of COVID-19 cases by ZIP code in Quay County through Friday was 405 in Tucumcari, 116 in Logan, 32 in San Jon, 11 in House, nine in McAlister, six in Nara Visa, six in Bard and five in Grady (part of which extends into Quay County).

A total of 527 people in the county were deemed by the New Mexico Department of Health to have recovered from the virus.

These COVID-19 rapid responses were reported by the state last week:

• New Mexico State Parks region in Tucumcari, one case reported July 29;

• PMG Family Medicine at Trigg Memorial Hospital, one case reported July 29;

• ENMRSH Early Childhood in Tucumcari, one case reported July 30;

• Pizza Hut in Tucumcari, one case reported Aug. 2;

• Protective Services Division in Tucumcari, one case reported Aug. 2;

• Mesa Counseling in Tucumcari, one case reported Aug. 4.

A typical rapid response consists of isolating positive cases, quarantining close contacts, 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.

In New Mexico, 569 new COVID-19 cases were reported Friday, bringing the overall total to more than 213,000 since the pandemic began.

The seven-day daily case average in the state has risen from a low of 60 in late June to more than 400 last week — an indication of the Delta variant upsurge.

Six COVID-19 deaths were reported in the state Friday, raising the total at 4,425.

A total of 216 people were hospitalized in New Mexico with the disease Friday, an increase of more than 70 from the previous week. It was the fifth straight week the state had seen an increase in its COVID-19 hospitalization numbers.

More than 900 people were hospitalized with the disease during the pandemic’s peak last winter.

The Amarillo metro region on Friday totaled 1,819 active cases of the disease, an increase of more than 700 from the previous week. The active-case count was about 300 just a few weeks ago.

The disease has killed 780 people in the Amarillo metro since the pandemic began. The hospitalization rate in the Amarillo area has risen from 3% to more than 10% in just a few weeks.

In the U.S., more than 35.7 million people have been confirmed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, with more than 616,000 deaths, through Friday.

According to state data Friday, 42.9% of Quay County residents have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus. That was an increase of 0.3% from the previous week.

About 47.3% of Quay County residents have received one shot of COVID-19 vaccine through Friday, an increase of 0.7% from the previous week.

New Mexico’s full vaccination rate rose to 65.3% as of Friday, and 73.8% had received at least one dose of vaccine.

The state announced Thursday that 50% of New Mexicans age 12 to 17 had received at least one dose of the vaccine.

The state also announced it would implement a second round of $100 incentives to receive the vaccine through August. To be eligible, New Mexico residents will have to register with an email, phone number, or home address at vaccineNM.org. New Mexicans also can call 1-855-600-3453 for assistance with registering.