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Columbiana County stays in the orange

LISBON — Columbiana County remains at level two, orange, on the Ohio Public Health Advisory System even as Ohio coronavirus cases rose by 2,178, the most cases in a single day.

As cases continue to climb, county health department public information officer Laura Fauss said they would like to remind everyone that you can catch coronavirus from your friends. With 100 percent of the newest cases unconnected to a nursing home or the prison, Fauss said they indicate community spread of the virus in the general population.

As of Wednesday there were 2,036 cases in Columbiana County and Fauss said a number of the latest cases can be traced to one party, where a group of friends got together outdoors but did not wear masks. She suggests if you are to gather with friends outside you should still wear a mask and stay apart as much as possible to lessen the risks.

She also encourages anyone who is having symptoms to get tested. Many of the symptoms of coronavirus are similar to other illnesses including allergies, but she notes the only way to know for sure is to be tested.

There are now 29 level three red counties and only seven counties are level one, yellow, the lowest level on the Ohio Public Health Advisory System. The remaining counties are orange. In our area, Mahoning, Stark, Portage and Summit are the closest red counties.

Columbiana County’s orange ranking came after meeting three of the seven indicators. One is for having more than 50 cases per 100,000 residents over the last two weeks. The second is for having more than 50 percent of the cases in at least one of the past three weeks not in a congregate settings. The final one is for having sustained increases in outpatient visits for coronavirus symptoms in at least five days over the past three weeks.

On a positive note, Fauss reported Wellsville’s home football game was visited again last Friday by the Ohio High School Athletic Association, which ranked them again as excellent for following the rules to prevent the spread of the virus.

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