rachelh@myweeklysentinel.com
BRADFORD COUNTY — COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Bradford County.
To date, Bradford County has 1,686 confirmed cases according to the PA Department of Health. There are 236 probable cases, but they are not confirmed. Bradford County has had 38 deaths that are considered COVID-related. The negative tests are at 13,657.
Pennsylvania as a whole has 340,648 confirmed cases and 10,563 deaths related to COVID.
While the date provided by the PA DOH shows cases had dropped slightly over the summer, they are again on the rise.
Governor Tom Wolf and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine released a weekly status update detailing the state’s mitigation efforts based on the COVID-19 Early Warning Monitoring System Dashboard, highlighting a seven-day case increase of 41,424 cases, statewide percent positivity of 11.7%, and 66 of 67 counties with substantial transmission status.
Due to the rise in cases, Gov. Wolf has placed more restrictions. Gov. Wolf and Secretary of Health Rachel Levine advised all Pennsylvanians to stay home if possible. Alcohol sales were prohibited after 5 p.m. last Wednesday to deter people from gathering in larger groups for the Thanksgiving holiday.
State officials also advised schools to go fully remote in all counties that are in “substantial spread.” All counties in our area ere required to do this except Pike, Sullivan and Wayne.
Canton and Troy School Districts are currently on remote learning due to cases. As of press time, both schools are due to return to in-person learning on Monday, Dec. 7.
“Unfortunately, this is the seventh consecutive week that Bradford County has been in the substantial phase. As a result, we will be remaining in remote learning Dec. 1-4,” said Troy Superintendent Dr. Eric Stair in a Facebook status. “However, the plan moving forward is to return to in-school instruction Dec. 7-10, with remote learning from home on Dec. 11. We will be in-school Dec. 14-17, with remote learning from home on Dec. 18. We will be in-school Dec. 21 and 22. All extra-curricular activities will resume on Dec. 7.
The schools are asking that parents take precautions to help stop the spread of COVID.
“We are asking that each of you continue to screen your students daily before sending them into school and keep them home if they are sick. If your student becomes COVID positive, please contact your building level administrator immediately. If you have any COVID-19 related questions or concerns, please call our building nurses and they can assist you. As a community, the key to our success is to continue working together as we strive to keep our Trojan Family healthy. Thank you for working with us as we navigate through this difficult pandemic together,” said Dr. Stair.
Stair also reminds parents that though school returns to in-person learning, they do have the option to keep their child remote.
“I think it is important for our community to understand that this guidance will dictate how we move forward with our instructional platform,” said Dr. Eric Briggs in a letter to Canton School District parents on Nov. 25. “Moving forward, we will be following a 14-day rolling average of cases that we have within the district to determine whether we will continue to stay open in ‘in-person’ instruction or move to “remote learning.”