A projected post-Thanksgiving surge in the pandemic is evident in this week’s local COVID-19 case numbers.
Gloucester added 118 new cases during the past week, while Mathews added 73. These were the largest increases in the number of cases in a single week for both counties since the pandemic began. Gloucester has now had 682 people test positive for the virus, with 24 residents who have been hospitalized and five who have died. In Mathews, the total number of cases was 247 as of Wednesday morning, with 13 people who have been hospitalized since April, and one death.
Middlesex County saw less dramatic increases, with 33 new cases over the past week, for a total of 219 as of Wednesday morning, while the number of hospitalizations rose by one, to 11, and the number of deaths remained the same, also 11.
In Mathews, the surge was impacted by an outbreak at Riverside Convalescent Center, where 39 cases were reported among residents between Saturday and Tuesday, along with 15 cases among sta...