Strasburg town offices will be âfunctionalâ but closed to the public for the next two weeks due to a recent increase in COVID-19 cases among town staff.
Town Manager Wyatt Pearson said Monday afternoon eight staff members have tested positive for COVID-19. He declined to discuss their level of symptoms out of privacy concerns beyond saying they varied. Nobody has been hospitalized, he said.
Pearson declined to say which departments those with positive cases work in, also out of privacy concerns to not identify who they are. The people with positive test results are not working, either by using sick time allotted to them by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act or their personal sick time, Pearson said.
Year in Review: Pandemic plagued local residents, businesses, schools winchesterstar.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from winchesterstar.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
 One COVID-19 death in Winchester was reported Friday, the same day that the Virginia Department of Health reported across the state the fifth-highest number of new COVID-19 case, less than 50 percent of that number on Saturday, and the seventh-highest number of new cases on Sunday.
The state’s website at vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus reported 4,078 on Friday, 1,584 new cases on Saturday and 3,999 on Sunday.
The reporting comes after Thursday, Christmas Eve, reported the largest number of new cases at 4,782.
Included with the weekend reporting were an increase of hospitalizations with 61 on Friday, 14 on Saturday, and 84 on Sunday. The death toll increased by 29 on Friday, 20 on Saturday and 14 on Sunday.
The information box on this story has been changed to include the correct phone number to call if you d like a sign.
WINCHESTER â A campaign to address holiday depression, which has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, includes distributing free yard signs with inspirational messages.
The messages are designed to promote compassion, community solidarity and individual perseverance. They include, âDonât Give Upâ, âYou Are Not Aloneâ and âLife is Tough, But Youâre Tougher.â The slogans were written by state mental health professionals, according to Rebekah Schennum, a prevention specialist with Northwestern Community Services, an area drug and mental health treatment provider that is distributing the signs regionally.
Virginia sees new high in cases as health district adds two deaths nvdaily.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nvdaily.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.