Waterbury’s COVID-19 cases grow as some establishments pause activity
October 30, 2020 | By Lisa Scagliotti
The number of COVID-19 cases in Waterbury is growing and can be attributed in part to an outbreak in Central Vermont connected with recreational hockey, state officials said Friday.
And as the pandemic enters its ninth month, those in charge of the state’s response are stressing the importance of following public health guidelines to wear masks, distance from others, and follow travel guidance or risk another shutdown as winter approaches.
The Department of Health town-by-town map showing COVID-19 case numbers in Vermont since March 5 that was released on Friday reflects data collected through Wednesday, Oct. 28. It lists Waterbury as having 19 cases, up from 15 the previous week. Duxbury still is listed with zero cases; Stowe increased by one to 24 cases and Middlesex has moved from the 1-5 case range to six.
Friday’s COVID-19 briefing with top state officials offered details about the Central Vermont outbreak associated with recreational hockey that started in Montpelier in early October.
Commissioner Michael Pieciak of the state Department of Financial Regulation shared data that show a total of 89 cases connected with the outbreak spread across 18 towns – including Waterbury – in four counties. They also involve 19 other locations such as workplaces and schools.
The outbreak’s cases account for over 26 percent of all the new COVID-19 cases in Vermont since Oct. 7, Pieciak said.
State officials stressed that the initial spread did not come from playing hockey but from the social gatherings before and after games including carpooling. “People were gathering in group sizes that met guidelines indoors and outdoors but at times people were not wearing masks,” said State Epidemiologist Pasty Kelso.
Afterward, infections spread in several key ways: individuals did not quarantine after being identified as a close contact of someone infected; others ignored symptoms or continued their routines while waiting for test results.
“Cases of COVID-19 often begin with no symptoms,” she said. “People think they’re fine and they go out to eat or to an event ... then find out later they were infectious at the time.”
Caution in the community
The news comes as the community has seen some decisions by establishments that serve the public choosing to close out of caution. The American Legion Post 59 announced Thursday that it will remain closed for a second week after closing on Oct. 22.
The legion, which has been operating on a limited schedule in recent months, decided to stay closed initially because it said two individuals who frequent the facility had tested positive for COVID-19 after being exposed to someone outside of the legion.
In a Facebook post Thursday, legion Adjutant Chris Wood explained that the closure would extend another week in part due to water line work on Stowe Street that would prevent operations anyway.
“We had already decided to close the post on Halloween leaving only Sunday as a possible day for the post to be open over the weekend. It was decided that another week closed makes the most sense in terms of ability to operate fully and gives another week to watch for any additional circulation of COVID-19 within our community” Wood said. “We plan to reopen our doors on Thursday 5 November at 3 p.m.”
Similarly, downtown diner Park Row Cafe also told patrons in a social media post on Tuesday, Oct. 27, that it was closing for the rest of the week. No reopening date has been announced.
A response to an inquiry to the cafe said that no one employed at the restaurant had tested positive. “But with how small our Waterbury community is, we think it’s best to close for the week and make sure we can provide the best for our town.”
COVID fatigue warning
These developments come as cases across the country continue to mount and even in Vermont, where the response has kept the spread of the coronavirus in check, public officials caution that the trend in new cases is upward.
At his Friday press briefing on COVID-19, Gov. Phil Scott urged Vermonters to not succumb to “pandemic fatigue” where people may start to neglect the guidance to wear masks, distance and
follow travel rules.
“People are tired of having to be so careful all the time,” Scott said. “I get it.”
Health Department officials seeing case numbers grow caution that Vermont could go from single-digit daily increases in late summer and early fall to a projected 50 cases per day by mid-November.
“We must stay vigilant,” the governor said. “If we want to keep our schools and economy open, we need to double down on efforts to contain this virus.”
Vermont Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine echoed that message, “The virus is making a dangerous comeback in many parts of the country. This is the worst time to let COVID fatigue set in.”
Levine mentioned that his staff is paying attention to 11 situations currently in schools and three in child care settings, “many of them in the monitoring phase.” But growing cases in schools will be disruptive and will have rippling effects in communities, Levine said, making prevention paramount.
Levine’s caution comes at schools in the Harwood Union Unified School District just this week shifted their hybrid learning format from two to four in-person instruction days for students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Students in grades 7-12 remain in school just two days and learning remotely three days per week. Classroom space and state distancing guidelines requiring six feet of separation for the older students won’t allow for those classes to return for more days, school officials say.
Levine said the lesson from the outbreak connected with the hockey league is to be vigilant about social circles and gatherings especially as people gather indoors more. It also might mean skipping travel which should necessitate quarantining in many cases. “That’s a really hard holiday message to deliver,” Levine said.
More information about COVID-19 Vermont data, health recommendations, etc. is online on the Vermont Department of Health website.