A COVID-19 cluster was identified at a childcare center and an outbreak was reported at a congregate living facility, both of which are in Elon, according to the Alamance County Health Department.
The childcare cluster was identified at Childcare Network in Elon where five cases had been confirmed by Friday, Dec. 11. Four of those cases are in children with the fifth being a staff member.
The NC DHHS defines a cluster as a minimum of five confirmed cases within a 14-day period and “plausible epidemiologic linkage between cases.”
The childcare facility did not provide a statement to the Health Department.
The congregate living facility outbreak is at Blakely Hall Assisted Living and is the second reported outbreak at the facility. Six cases were confirmed by Friday, including five residents and one staff member.
NC DHHS defines an outbreak as two or more confirmed cases in a period of 28 days within a congregate living or long term care facility.
“We also communicated with our resident’s families and responsible parties to inform them of our results. The cases are concentrated to our main assisted living building. Our residents are quarantining in their rooms as we move forward to further sanitize our facility. Our medical provider has been conducting weekly tests up until this point. We will continue to work with the Health Department to aggressively protect our residents and staff,” Ed Weeks, executive director for Blakely Hall, said.
“Alamance County Health Department responded quickly to both Childcare Network and Blakey Hall to offer testing and guidance to mitigate the outbreak as quickly as possible,” added Health Director Tony Lo Giudice. “We will continue to work with both facilities to ensure the safety of the community.”
As of Friday, Alamance County saw a total of 8,827 cases reported since its first case on March 20. One hundred twenty-three deaths have been reported and 56 individuals were hospitalized for care Friday.
“COVID-19 cases are continuing to rise in Alamance and surrounding counties. It is important to take steps to reduce your risks of contracting COVID-19, specifically wearing a face covering, maintaining physical distance and avoiding crowds, and washing your hands and cleaning commonly used surfaces regularly,” the Health Department said. “During this holiday season, limit travel and limit physical contact with people who do not live in your household. The health of you, your loved ones, and the community are what matters.”
