Eddy County has active COVID-19 case; no details announced

Eddy County has one (1) new active case of COVID-19. However, local agencies have not released any further information about the individual.

"I do not have any more information for now," Tiffany Harr, Eddy County Public Information Officer, said in an email reply to the Transcript. Eddy County Public Health Nurse Danette Schmid also would not comment further.

This case is puzzling because no information other than the county of residence and source of spread has been released, not even age or gender, which normally is shared. The NDDoH indicates that the individual contracted the disease through community spread.

However, the NDDoH website has the case recorded as "recovered" on its website. There are two positive cases and two recovered cases in Eddy County, per the health department's statistics.

Update 5-12-20, 11 a.m .: The NDDoH statistics have been updated to reflect that the individual who tested positive for COVID-19 in Eddy County has NOT recovered. Therefore, this is a new active, positive case, and the cause of infection is community spread. Residents are encouraged to stay safe by following state and CDC guidelines.

"The North Dakota Department of Health is reminding people that it is very important to be diligent about social distancing and washing /disinfecting hands and surfaces on a regular basis. If you have questions on proper mask wearing or want to find a pattern to sew masks, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/DIY-cloth-face-covering-instructions.pdf. The EPA has some good information on disinfectant use and cleaning guidelines on their website https://www.epa.gov/coronavirus," Harr stated.

The Transcript will be following this developing story and will post more details as made available.