PORTLAND, Ore. — After setting a new record single-day high for confirmed and presumptive coronavirus cases on Thursday, Oregon health officials reported another considerable spike on Friday.
The Oregon Health Authority 344 new cases as of midnight on Friday morning, bringing the state total to 9,636.
The new confirmed and presumptive COVID-19 cases were in the following counties: Benton (7), Clackamas (22), Clatsop (1), Columbia (3), Coos (1), Crook (1), Deschutes (9), Douglas (1), Jackson (9), Jefferson (5), Josephine (3), Klamath (2), Lake (1), Lane (16), Lincoln (18), Linn (2), Malheur (20), Marion (32), Morrow (10), Multnomah (59), Polk (5), Sherman (1), Tillamook (1), Umatilla (49), Union (8), Wasco (10), Washington (46), and Yamhill (1).
The agency also released a new table, showing the recent case trends by county between mid-June and the beginning of July.
"These trends show where the COVID-19 virus is spreading at the fastest rate and which counties have the highest rates of 'sporadic' transmission – i.e., cases that do not have a clear epidemiological link to other outbreaks or clusters of infections and therefore indicate that the virus is spreading uncontained in a community," OHA said.
Jackson County had a case rate of 21.47 per 100,000 population, and a sporadic case rate of 8.4. Josephine County had a more modest case rate of 17.55, but a much higher sporadic rate of 16.38.
Klamath County, which has seen a boom in cases since reopening, had a case rate of 82.94, but a sporadic cast rate of 16.59. Health officials there have said that many of the new cases were discovered through contact tracing, accounting for the relatively low rate of community spread.
Governor Kate Brown on Friday named eight counties that have been placed on a "watch list" based on recent spikes in community spread cases: Jefferson, Lake, Lincoln, Malheur, Morrow, Umatilla, Union, Wasco.
"State and local health officials will closely monitor the situation in these counties in coming days and prioritize additional resources to suppress the virus in these hotspot communities," OHA said.
Reporting nine new cases on Friday, public health officials in Jackson County urged people in the area to use the utmost caution over the Fourth of July weekend.
"COVID‐19 cases are surging throughout Oregon since the state began its phased reopening. Recent modeling suggests the virus is continuing to spread rapidly in all age groups," Jackson County Public Health said. "COVID-19 is still in our communities, and each of us has a role to play in reducing its spread. As you prepare to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday with families, friends and loved ones, we want you to consider the risks of your holiday activities."
"The safest choice for this holiday is to celebrate at home with the members of your immediate household. If you choose to celebrate in other ways, activities that take place outdoors that allow for enough room to maintain physical distancing and involve fewer people are lower risk activities compared to activities that take place indoors that do not allow for physical distancing and involve more people," the agency continued.
Josephine County also reported seven new cases, three confirmed and four presumptive. Officials said that they were investigating all of the cases to identify and isolate all contacts related to the cases.
