The deaths included two Burleigh County residents, two McLean County residents and one from each of Logan and Ward counties. Residents whose deaths were reported on Wednesday ranged between 60 and 100 years.
During the past month and a half, active cases of COVID-19 plummeted from their peak of more than 10,000 on November 13, and Wednesday’s rise in active cases marked a break in the trend of the past few weeks. Now, 1,821 people in North Dakota are known to be infected with the virus, 120 more on Tuesday. With the decline of the past few weeks, cases of active viruses in North Dakota have been at their lowest since late August, when the rise of the virus in the state was just beginning.
The health department said 1,282 North Dakota residents have died of COVID-19 since March. The state averaged nearly eight deaths a day in December, marking a drop from November, when an average of more than 16 North Dakotans died each day. However, the state has the fourth highest number of deaths per capita in the country during the pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
At least 768 of the deaths in the state occurred in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. There are 50 residents of infected nursing homes in the state, down more than 300 since the beginning of the month.
Hospitalizations for viruses have also declined significantly, declining by more than 200 people since mid-November. On Wednesday, the number of North Dakotans hospitalized with COVID-19 fell 19 from the previous day, bringing the state to less than 100 hospitalizations for viruses for the first time since September.
The department reported 375 new cases on Wednesday, including:
- 72 from Cass County, which includes Fargo.
- 35 from Burleigh County, which covers Bismarck.
- 20 from Grand Forks County.
About 4.7% of the 7,919 residents tested as part of the last batch received a positive result, and the average positive rate of those tested in the last two weeks is about 4.6%. The state has yet to say how many residents had negative results on rapid antigen tests, although 119 of Wednesday’s positive results came from the new 15-minute tests.
Health workers began receiving their first doses of the newly released COVID-19 vaccines earlier this month, and vaccinations in state nursing homes are underway this week. Public health officials have urged North Dakota residents to avoid trips and large gatherings over the Christmas and New Year holidays, to avoid an increase in cases in January.
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Readers can contact Forum News Service reporter Adam Willis, a member of Report for America, at [email protected].