The Guthrie County Department of Public Health has confirmed three additional deaths associated with COVID-19, bringing the county’s total to 10. Two of these individuals were over the age of 80 while the third was 52 years old. All of these patients had underlying health conditions. “We want to extend our deepest condolences to the individual’s family. We are all in this fight together,” says Guthrie County Public Health Director, Jotham Arber. The department is urging all residents to do their part in limiting coronavirus spread by wearing a cloth face mask when social distancing of at least six feet is not possible, staying home if you are an at-risk individual or are feeling ill, covering coughs and sneezes and washing hands frequently with soap and water. As of 8 a.m. Thursday morning, Guthrie County is reporting 271 positive cases, up 26 since Monday morning, with 174 recovered, a two-week positivity rate of 13.3 percent and 87 active cases. In the rest of the region: Carroll is now at 711 positive cases, up 36 in the past four days, with five deaths, 453 classified as recovered, 253 active cases and a 9.5 percent positivity rate; Crawford County has 1,117 positive cases with 847 recovered and six deaths for a total of 264 active cases and a positivity rate of 16.4, ranking eighth in the state; Sac County has 276 positives, 126 recovered and a 13.5 percent positivity rate; Calhoun is at 196 positives, three deaths and 171 recovered with 6.3 percent positivity; Greene reports 109 positives, 62 recovered and a 4.9 percent rate; and Audubon has 91 positives, one death, 39 recovered and an 11.3 percent positivity rate. For the state of Iowa, as of 8 a.m., there are 89,317 positive cases reported since the pandemic began with 69,523 recovered and 1,358 deaths.
