Today Mendocino County Health Officer Dr. Noemi Doohan confirmed 6 new COVID-19 cases in the Ukiah Valley region. Four of the 6 cases are teenagers. Eight of the new cases have been traced back to two end of school year/graduation related gatherings in Ukiah. The new cases today brings Mendocino County’s case count to 53 (19 isolated, 1 hospitalized in the ICU; 33 recovered). In addition, 4 cases over the past week have been linked to in-person church services in the Ukiah area.
In response to this spike in positive cases, Mendocino County Public Health will be doing outbreak testing at the Public Health Building, 1120 South Dora Street in Ukiah today, Wednesday, June 17, from 4:30pm – 7:00pm and tomorrow, Thursday, June 18, from 7:00am – 10:00am. If you have been notified by Public Health that you have been exposed to COVID-19 or have been to a graduation/end of school year gathering or in-person church service in the Ukiah area in the past 10 days please stop by and get tested.
Mendocino County is experiencing a spike in cases for individuals under the age of 35, which now makes up 43% of cases. In addition, the case that was recently in the ICU was in the 19-35 age group. The end of the school year, graduation and the start of summer is often a time to celebrate and hold large gatherings. All gatherings including those in homes, parks and community spaces are not allowed and are high-risk for the spread of COVID-19. Group activities are limited to members of the same household or a Social Bubble which means a stable group of 12 individuals who form either a Household Support Unit, a Childcare Unit, or a Children’s Extracurricular Activity Unit (Please refer to Mendocino County’s infographic for social bubbles: https://www.mendocinocounty.org/home/showdocument?id=35704).
To help our community stay safe, slow the spread of COVID-19 and continue reopening, everyone, including teens and young adults, should avoid the three C’s:
- Confined spaces – especially with poor ventilation.Outdoors in better than indoors.
- Crowds and gatherings – the more people the higher the risk.
- Close contact – staying further apart is safer than being close together.
Every resident can take simple steps to reduce their risk of COVID-19 by washing hands often, wearing a cloth face covering around others, avoid touching your face, avoid sharing food, drinks, toys, sports equipment, keep interactions with others outside of your home or social bubble short and give yourself space from others (6ft).
As a reminder to parents, Mendocino County and the cities of Fort Bragg and Ukiah have Social Host Ordinances which state parents or guardians are responsible for parties at their homes even if the parents/guardians are absent during the event. Parents/guardians are liable for what transpires at the party in their absence.
Public Health recommends individuals who have recently been to a large gatherings, in-person church service or protest to schedule an appointment for surveillance testing at OptumServe in Ukiah. To make an appointment go online to lhi.care/covidtesting or call 888-634-1123. Our local testing location is at the Empire Fairgrounds in Ukiah and is open Tuesday – Saturday from 7am – 7pm. OptumServe is for those without symptoms. If you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms please contact your primary care physician at your local clinic or hospital for testing.
For more on COVID-19:
www.mendocinocounty.org
Call Center: (707) 234-6052 or email callcenter@mendocinocounty.org
The call center is open Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
