Allegheny reports no COVID-19 deaths for two straight days
Allegheny County, where COVID-19 cases surged this summer, reported no new deaths from the virus Monday for the second consecutive day.
There were 29 new positive cases of the novel coronavirus in Allegheny where they were trending in three digits in daily reports two weeks ago, the county’s health department reported Monday.
“Together, as Pennsylvanians, we each have a part to play in working to ensure that cases of COVID-19 remain low,” said state Health Sec. Rachel Levine.
There were no new deaths from the virus reported in Washington, Greene or Fayette counties, where the number of new cases remained low Monday.
Washington and Fayette each added three new cases to their totals that reached 979 and 661, respectively. Greene added one new cases to its total of 135, state Health Department records show.
The virus has killed 7,579 residents of Pennsylvania since March after one new death statewide was announced Monday.
Bars remained closes and restaurants were still operating at reduced capacity under a state order designed to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The state also was still requiring the wearing of face masks in public and inside businesses.
“Wearing a mask, practicing social distancing, and following the requirements set forth in the orders for bars and restaurants, gatherings and telework will help keep our case counts low,” Levine said.
Gov. Tom Wolf said the state’s mitigation strategy has been working because the percentage of positive test results has dropped in each of the past four weeks.
“The virus is still circulating, and we must continue to wear masks, practice social distancing and avoid large gatherings to keep our numbers low, stop the spread and allow more freedom,” Wolf said.
The state has seen an 1,112 decrease in new cases during the past seven days when compared to the previous week, he said.
The statewide percent-positivity dropped to 3.4 percent from 4.0 percent the previous week.
Meanwhile, 50 percent of the people who were reached by contact tracers reported having visited a restaurant 14 days before the onset of symptom. Forty-eight percent of them stated they had been to a mass gathering.