By Carrie Moritz, Gazette
As the promise of a vaccine hits the horizon, COVID-19 case numbers have been increasing around the United States. Just over two weeks ago, South Dakota was battling North Dakota for the number one spot per capita in the number of cases, and November was the deadliest month so far since the first death from COVID was announced in March.
The number of deaths in November more than doubled, going from a total of 425 on October 31 to a total of 946 on November 30. Most of those lost were over the age of 80 as uncontrolled community spread led to outbreaks in South Dakota nursing homes. Experts warn that uncontrolled community spread and overwhelmed hospitals will lead to more preventable deaths, similar to what was seen in Italy and New York earlier this year.
Deaths haven’t been the only thing to worry about with COVID, either. More data has been coming in with regards to “long-haulers,” those people who are still suffering from side effects or health problems after having COVID-19. It is estimated that while nearly 40% of people may have mostly asymptomatic cases, anywhere from 10-30% of people may still be suffering from a host of issues even 3 to 6 months later. These issues are varied, and include continued fatigue, an inability to concentrate, psychological issues, an increased incidence of strokes, headache, problems sleeping, and more. These issues appear to affect people of all ages. Some long haulers may only have mild cases during their initial phase, but are still seeing lingering effects months later.
On Tuesday, it was reported via Facebook that Garretson kids’ wrestling coach, baseball coach, GFD volunteer firefighter, and Brandon schoolteacher Cody Linneweber’s heart stopped on Monday as a result of COVID. He was able to be revived and his family is asking for prayers as the community rallies around him.
As the weather turns cooler, people move indoors, and “pandemic fatigue” sets in, the pandemic has become harder to control. Nearly all states in the US have seen an increase over the past month. North Dakota crossed the threshold of over 10% of its population being diagnosed with COVID last week, and Minnesota and Iowa have seen a sharp rise in cases over the past few weeks.
To help reduce the spread, several communities in South Dakota have implemented mask ordinances and are encouraging residents to follow all CDC guidelines, such as distancing, stopping gatherings, and handwashing. Family gatherings for Thanksgiving were discouraged.
The message appears to be working. Over the past week, diagnoses of new cases have continued to fall.
However, that does not mean South Dakota, or even Garretson, is in the clear. Active cases continue to be well over what they were during the summer, and several Garretson community members have been impacted by the virus.
During the summer, the entire state had an average of less than or around 1,000 active cases per day. On Tuesday, the number had fallen from a high of 19,360 active cases on November 15 down to 14,088. Minnehaha County, which continues to be most heavily impacted in terms of total numbers, had over 3,000 active cases. All told, over 20,000 people in Minnehaha County have been diagnosed with COVID-19, which is 10.7% of the total county population.
At a press conference on Monday, Avera’s Dr. David Basel warned that numbers could increase again within the next two weeks due to Thanksgiving. Both he and Sanford’s Mike Wilde warned that their ICU’s are at or past capacity, and have been for several weeks now. The South Dakota Department of Health states that as of Tuesday, 53% of staffed adult ICU beds statewide were full of COVID patients. After taking into account those ICU beds taken for other conditions, only 17% of South Dakota’s staffed adult ICU beds remained available. Hospitalizations remained well above 550 patients throughout the end of November, only falling below that over the Thanksgiving weekend.
“I was thinking yesterday as I was watching the Vikings pull it off- which is very rare,” said Sioux Falls Mayor Paul TenHaken on Monday. “The Vikings have a history of not finishing well. So as we move into December, I just couldn’t help but think about how important diligence will be to us in finishing well over the next couple months. Sometimes I think people see positive trending and positive information and they want to let their guard down.”
He noted that there are several more months of mitigation that are going to have to occur before the promised vaccines are widely available. He reiterated the need to wear masks and work hard to protect others.
