COVID-19 kills 6 more county residents, 144 more infected

KINGMAN – The Mohave County Department of Public Health reported another 144 new cases of COVID-19 and six deaths from the virus on Wednesday, Nov. 17. Half of the deaths, and nearly half of the new cases, were logged in the Kingman medical service area. The report covered the two-day period between noon on Monday, Nov. 15 and noon on Wednesday.

The newly deceased from the Kingman area include a patient in the 40-49 age range, and two ages 70-79. The other three deaths were logged in the Bullhead City medical service area, one each ages 50-59, 70-79 and 80-89.

Of the 62 new Kingman-area cases, 23 were recorded in the age groups over 50 that have accounted for 95% of the deaths in the county since the beginning of the pandemic. There were nine new cases ages 60-69, six ages 50-59, and four each ages 70-79 and 80-89.

Another five cases were recorded in children and teens, including three ages 0-10 and two ages 11-19. There were also 13 new local cases in the 40-49 age bracket, plus 12 ages 20-29 and nine ages 30-39.

Elsewhere in the county there were 40 new cases reported in the Bullhead City medical service area, 37 in the Lake Havasu City area, four in the communities in the Arizona Strip and one in an undetermined location in the county.

Kingman now leads the county’s four medical service areas with 8,574 cases, and is second in the number of deaths with 228.

Community spread of the coronavirus in the county remains high, with 509 new cases and 12 deaths reported in the seven-day period ending at noon on Wednesday. That compares to 549 new cases and eight deaths reported by county health officials in the week ending Wednesday, Nov. 10. That was the most new cases in any single week since the week ending Sept. 29, and the fewest deaths in any single week since the week ending July 21. Spikes in cases are usually followed by an increase in deaths in about two weeks.

There were 368 new cases and 15 deaths recorded in the seven-day period ending on Wednesday, Nov. 3. That was down from 532 new cases and 13 deaths recorded in the county in the seven-day span ending at noon on Wednesday, Oct. 27. There were 426 new cases and 14 deaths in the week ending Wednesday, Oct. 20, up from 397 cases and 17 deaths in the week ending Wednesday, Oct. 13.

The number of new cases is rising nationwide, and Mohave County remains a high-transmission area. The county’s low vaccination rate has been cited as a primary reason by local health officials.

According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, only 41.5% of eligible county residents have received a COVID-19 vaccine, which have proven effective at preventing the disease and lessening the severity of breakthrough illnesses.

That places Mohave far below the 61% logged statewide. More than one-third of county residents – 74,126 of about 213,000 – are fully vaccinated.

According to the county’s website, Bullhead City has suffered the most with 244 coronavirus deaths. It is followed by Kingman with 228, Lake Havasu City with 193, Golden Valley with 46, Fort Mohave with 83 and Mohave Valley with 32. The locations of the remaining deaths are not specified by the county on its website.

Broken down by cities and communities, the county has recorded 8,574 cases in Kingman, 8,258 cases in Lake Havasu City, 7,549 in Bullhead City, 2,616 in Fort Mohave, 1,674 in Golden Valley, 1,191 in Mohave Valley and 563 in Beaver Dam/Littlefield/Colorado City. There have also been 220 cases in Topock, 153 in Dolan Springs, 91 in Meadview and 74 in Yucca. The locations of the remaining cases are not specified.

The age of the average COVID-19 victim in the county is 72.7 years, while the average patient is 45.2 years old. The case fatality rate in the county is 2.8%, meaning 28 of every 1,000 individuals who have contracted the virus have died. Approximately 14.8% of Mohave County residents are known to have been infected.

County health officials have logged 31,744 coronavirus cases since the first local case was reported on March 24, 2020, while the Arizona Department of Health Services has recorded 35,116 cases in the county. The county counts 889 deaths, while the state reports 1,017. County health officials report that 27,530 county residents are known to have recovered from the disease since the beginning of the pandemic.

According to daily testing data from AZDHS for Wednesday, Nov. 17 there were 122 new cases from 1,277 tests for a positivity rate of 10%.

The positivity rate was 11% (125/1,144) on Wednesday, Nov. 10; 31% (202/661) on Friday, Nov. 12; 17% (73/436) on Sunday, Nov. 14; 49% (185/374) on Monday, Nov. 15; and 15% 83/563) on Tuesday, Nov. 16.

Since the beginning of the pandemic 301,946 tests have been conducted on county residents and 12.3% have been positive, according to AZDHS.

Statewide on Thursday, Nov. 18 AZDHS was reporting 4,184 new cases from 43,243 tests for a positivity rate of 10%. More than 1,228,076 Arizonans have contracted the virus and 21,808 have died.

Nationwide, Johns Hopkins University of Medicine was reporting more than 47 million confirmed cases and 767,450 deaths the morning of Thursday, Nov. 18.

Globally, Johns Hopkins was reporting more than 5.1 million deaths from more than 255 million confirmed cases on Thursday, Nov. 18.

Vaccines are readily available at area pharmacies, physician offices and the Kingman Regional Medical Center COVID Services office at the corner of Stockton Hill Road and Detroit Avenue.

Residents age 5 and up can now be vaccinated, and booster shots are available for persons over age 65, and those who have underlying health conditions or work with the public.

To curtail virus spread, public health officials recommend that the unvaccinated maintain a distance of at least 6 feet from others, wash their hands thoroughly and frequently, and wear a face covering when social distancing isn’t possible.

For some patients, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, or no symptoms at all.

For others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. Some individuals with the virus, including those who have been fully vaccinated, can exhibit no symptoms, but are still capable of transmitting the disease.

The Kingman medical service area includes Kingman, New-Kingman/Butler, Chloride, Valentine, Meadview, Wikieup, Yucca, White Hills, Hackberry, Peach Springs, Valle Vista and Oatman.