No apparent COVID-19 cases reported in county

No apparent cases of COVID-19 were reported in Quay County last week – the first time that had happened in many months.

The total number in the county since the pandemic began in spring 2020 stood at 2,003, one fewer than the previous week. No explanation was given for the New Mexico Department of Health’s apparent lowering of total cases by one.

According to state epidemiology reports, Quay County’s COVID-19 case rate dropped to 3.3 new cases per 100,000 people from April 13 to April 25, compared to 3.4 during the previous period.

The county remained in the yellow zone for risk, as did many other counties in New Mexico, though the neighboring counties of San Miguel and Curry fell into the red zone.

The breakdown of COVID-19 cases by ZIP code in Quay County through Friday was 1,540 in Tucumcari, 280 in Logan, 94 in San Jon, 34 in House, 21 in McAlister, 18 in Bard and 14 in Nara Visa. Those numbers did not change from the previous weeks.

The county’s death toll rose by one, to 52, since the pandemic began. A total of 44 deaths have occurred in the county in the past year. COVID-19 deaths sometimes aren’t reported for several weeks after they occur.

The state stated a total of 1,940 people in Quay County have recovered from the virus.

No COVID-19 rapid responses again were reported in the county last week. None has been reported since March 23.

The state’s seven-day daily case rate rose slightly, totaling 132 by Friday. The rate was 120 the previous Friday.

A total of 245 new cases of coronavirus were reported in New Mexico on Friday. That raised the total since the pandemic began to more than 522,000.

A total of 33 people remained hospitalized in New Mexico with the disease Friday, a decrease from the 51 reported in the previous week.

Fifteen COVID-19 deaths were reported in the state Friday, raising the total to nearly 7,500.

The total number of active cases in the Amarillo metro region rose slightly Friday to 94, compared to 92 the previous week.

The disease has killed 1,270 people in the Amarillo metro since the pandemic began.

In the U.S., more than 81.3 million people have been confirmed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, with more than 993,000 deaths, through Friday.

New Mexico residents can schedule vaccinations through the state’s registration portal at VaccineNM.org.

The Department of Health’s vaccination helpline is available at 855-600-3453, option 3.