Six new cases of COVID in Kandiyohi County as total nears 500

WILLMAR — There were six new confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported in Kandiyohi County in Sunday's state report, bringing the total confirmed cases among residents of the county to 496, according to the Minnesota Department of Health.

Big Stone County reported one new case, there were two new cases in Chippewa County, one new case in Redwood County and seven in Stearns County.

Statewide there were 664 new cases reported for a total of 24,850 with 2,690 of them being health care workers.

There were 14 additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 in the state, for a current total of 1,040.

The news comes as the Twin Cities area and nation grapples with protests and riots sparked by the death of 46-year-old George Floyd, of Minneapolis, in police custody. Demonstrations held in the metro have drawn large crowds that threaten to increase the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

But any spikes that occur as a result of this week's protests will likely take three weeks to become apparent, given the incubation period of new cases and the lag time for test results to return. That places those cases in late June, a period already forecast as a window for a peak in the outbreak.

According to the report, most of the deaths, 848, have occurred in long-term care or assisted living facilities and 855 of the deaths were 70 years or older.

Statewide, there are 555 COVID patients currently in hospitals, 257 of them being treated in ICUs.

The Minnesota Department of Health is also reporting that 18,695 of the state's reported positive cases no longer need to self-isolate.

So far in Minnesota, there have been approximately 249,519 completed tests since Jan. 20.

The information was included in the latest Minnesota Department of Health daily situation update , released at 11 a.m. daily. The data released are current as of 4 p.m. the day before.

The current number of confirmed COVID-19 cases for area counties includes:

Big Stone County: 5

Chippewa County: 51

Kandiyohi County: 496

Lac qui Parle County: 3

Meeker County: 45

Redwood County: 5

Renville County: 5

Stearns County: 2,021

Swift County: 18

Yellow Medicine County: 6

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