As of Tuesday, Lane County has lost 59 residents to COVID-19. Following a predictable trend, mortality continues to increase among the elder population.
Public Health announced five new deaths due to COVID-19 over the last two days. All were over the age of 65. Spokesperson Jason Davis offered condolences.
“It is a tragedy that we are seeing so many deaths,” he said. “It’s almost expected that we will have at least one death per day and that’s a situation we have labored to avoid. And here we are.”
Davis said the current situation was foreseen. Over the summer, the majority of cases and clusters were in young people (17-30 yrs) who are least likely to suffer severe symptoms and death. But as those cases spread, Davis says the disease made its way into the most vulnerable population.
There are currently 12 active outbreaks in Lane County long term care facilities, accounting for 275 cases and 10 deaths thus far.
Davis said it is up to the community to protect the most susceptible among us. “We just really urge you to keep in mind the ramifications of your actions.”
