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COURT HOUSE – On April 4, the Cape May County Department of Health (DOH) reported the first county death due to complications of COVID-19 infection. The DOH release described the individual as a 72-year-old female, from Upper Township, who had underlying health conditions.
In the new overnight report, DOH listed 16 new positive cases in the county, ranging in age from 89 to 28 years old. The new cases included 11 females and 5 males. This brings the total of confirmed positive tests in the county to 69, with 54 active cases and 15 individuals listed as recovered.
Lower Township accounted for 10 of the new cases, bringing its number of active cases to 21 and total positive tests to 24. West Cape May and West Wildwood reported their first confirmed cases of COVID-19. This leaves only 3 municipalities in the township without a reported positive test: Cape May Point, Stone Harbor and Woodbine.
The average age of the new cases is 61-year-old with five above the age of 80, underscoring the concern for the older population, which is most vulnerable to serious outcomes from COVID-19 infection. The fact that 5 were 40 years old or less also shows the infections are not limited to the elderly.
The DOH emphasized the need for distancing, continued home isolation and appropriate hygiene, including covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands often and avoidance of facial touching.
The state COVID-19 dashboard can contain lower numbers for the county at times. The difference is largely due to the timing of when county test results are aggregated by the state.
