ERIE COUNTY (WKBW) — The Erie County Department of Health says 38 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Eden are linked to a single source of exposure.
“The Erie County Department of Health worked with the New York State Department of Health to expedite testing for a group of individuals, and their support allowed us to act quickly,” said Commissioner of Health Dr. Gale Burstein. “We took this approach based on our initial case investigation of several confirmed cases associated with a common site last week, which indicated the potential for a larger outbreak from this site.”
ECDOH says the case investigation is ongoing at this time and the risk of community transmission of COVID-19 from the new cases is considered to be very low.
WKBW has reached out to ECDOH for more information in regards to the new confirmed cases.
“As we said when announcing the cluster of cases at New Zion Baptist Church in July, we will see more situations where a cluster of cases forms around a shared activity or location,” said Dr. Burstein. “The individuals with a positive test result are currently in isolation, and their close contacts have been placed in quarantine.”
ECDOH says Erie County residents should:
- Stay home if you feel ill
- Wear a mask when you can’t maintain physical distancing of at least 6 feet
- Wash your hands frequently with soap and running water
- Avoid large gatherings continued
- Avoid travel to states listed in the NYS Joint Travel Advisory; if travel is unavoidable, quarantine for 14 days upon returning to New York
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and objects
- Consider a diagnostic COVID-19 test. These are available at no cost through ECDOH. Call (716) 858-2929 to schedule, or visit www.erie.gov/covidtestsites for a location near you. ECDOH recommends a diagnostic test for anyone with a recent travel history to states with a high level of community transmission, close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases, and people who have COVID-19 symptoms.
