Virus cases jump in number

Quay County last week saw a big jump in the number of coronavirus cases with 14, including six confirmed by the state’s Department of Health on Friday.

The county had seen its caseload fall to two to three cases per week throughout most of July. Last week’s surge was the latest sign that the more-contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 was spreading fast throughout the region, state and country — mostly among the unvaccinated.

Last week, cases were reported in these ZIP codes: nine in Tucumcari, three in Logan, one in Nara Visa and one in San Jon.

The county's overall case total rose to 557, with 11 deaths, since the pandemic began in spring 2020.

The breakdown of COVID-19 cases by ZIP code in Quay County through Friday was 383 in Tucumcari, 111 in Logan, 28 in San Jon, 11 in House, nine in McAlister, six in Nara Visa, five in Grady (part of which extends into Quay County), and five in Bard.

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

No COVID-19 rapid responses were reported in the county last week.

In New Mexico, 331 new COVID-19 cases were reported Friday, bringing the overall total to more than 210,000 since the pandemic began.

The seven-day case number has risen from a low of 60 in late June to more than 200 last week — an indication of the Delta variant upsurge.

New Mexico Health Secretary David Scrase said during a briefing Wednesday said he was concerned about the rise in cases statewide, noting it was similar to one seen in September. He expressed optimism the pandemic peak wouldn’t be as high was it was in December and January due to the state’s relatively high vaccination rates.

He urged New Mexico residents to get their vaccinations. Scrase said 97% of the hospitalizations and 99% of the deaths from COVID-19 were occurring in unvaccinated people.

“We in the middle of a pandemic for the unvaccinated,” he said. “It’s awful to have a death in New Mexico that could have been avoided.”

Scrase said the Delta variant was accounting for 83% of all U.S. infections and about 75% of infections in New Mexico.

Two COVID-19 deaths were reported in the state Friday, raising the total at 4,410.

A total of 148 people were hospitalized in New Mexico with the disease Friday, an increase of more than 40 from the previous week. It was the fourth 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 1,185 active cases of the disease, a rise of more than 500 from the previous week. The disease has killed 778 people in the metro since the pandemic began. The hospitalization rate in the Amarillo area has risen from 3% to more than 7% in just a few weeks.

In the U.S., more than 34.4 million people have been confirmed with COVID-19 since the pandemic began, with more than 610,000 deaths, through Friday.

According to state data Friday, 42.6% of Quay County residents have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus. That was an increase of 0.3% from the previous week.

About 46.6% of Quay County residents have received one shot of COVID-19 vaccine through Friday, an increase of 0.2%.

New Mexico’s full vaccination rate rose slowly to 64.8% as of Friday, and 73% had received at least one dose of vaccine.

Deputy Secretary of Health Laura Chanchien said she was “a little worried” about the upcoming return to school due to less than 38% of children age 12 to 17 have been fully vaccinated. She said Moderna and Pfizer were expanding clinical trials of their vaccines for children age 5 to 11.