WYOMING COUNTY, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Department of Health notes a spike in positive coronavirus cases in Wyoming County. As of Thursday, there are 281 cases and 13 deaths.
The department list 26 positive cases are new on Thursday, the county's highest one-day total. That might not seem like a large number to some, but it is cause for concern.
Wyoming County is more rural, with fewer people in the population for the numbers to be significant. Some of the cases are in high-traffic places.
The Wyoming County Courthouse has been closed since November 5 because of positive cases among employees. It is scheduled to reopen on November 16.
The Gardens at Tunkhannock nursing home is reporting 35 employees and 70 residents with positive cases.
The Lackawanna Trail School District posted to its website that there is another positive case in the high school. The school district put anyone in contact with the student in quarantine, but the school remains open for in-class learning. This comes after an outbreak back in early October that forced the school to go all virtual for some time.
Many people we spoke with who live in the county are concerned about the large spike.
"I don't really know why other than people aren't being careful," said Barbara Zeck of Tunkhannock.
"It was going up everywhere else. It was not going up here. It was staying nothing here, but then all of a sudden, it went up here," said Laura Kirk of Tunkhannock.
"People don't wear their masks, and they don't take precautions like they should. They think it's going under the radar, but it's not anymore," said Toni Hudock of Factoryville.
"I just feel that it would be a good idea to keep testing, be careful, follow the rules," continued Zeck.
Again, Wyoming County is not adding many cases per day, but based on the population size, the number is significant.