Elmhurst Sees Another Spike In Virus Cases

ELMHURST, IL — Elmhurst has experienced another big increase in its coronavirus caseload. As of Sunday, it had 954 cases, up 74 from a week earlier, according to the DuPage County Health Department. That represents an 8 percent increase.

The week before, Elmhurst recorded a 10 percent increase, with 81 new cases. At the rate of the last two weeks, Elmhurst should pass the 1,000 mark in the next week.

These increases are happening as the Elmhurst public schools are phasing in the return of in-person learning. That process ends this week, with the last grades coming back into class.

As of Sunday, the number of coronavirus-related deaths in Elmhurst numbered 47, the same as the week before.

Nursing homes are often hotbeds for the coronavirus, but those numbers have barely budged in recent weeks. In Elmhurst, The Grove of Elmhurst reported 98 cases as of Friday, according to the state Department of Public Health. It was followed by 44 at Artis Senior Living and 28 at Lexington of Elmhurst. The total coronavirus deaths are 20 at Artis, 15 at The Grove and 13 at Lexington. Artis' outbreak was early in the crisis, and the home has seen hardly any effects in months, according to Artis.

The case numbers at nursing homes include employees, who may live elsewhere, and are thus excluded from Elmhurst's overall number.

Here is how Elmhurst's coronavirus caseload has grown over time:

In DuPage County, Addison has the highest number of cases with 1,321, which works out to 36.2 per thousand. It is followed by West Chicago, with 1,179 cases, or 44 per thousand. Despite the high caseloads, both towns have seen relatively few deaths — 10 in Addison and 13 in West Chicago.

As of Sunday, Elmhurst had 20.4 coronavirus cases per thousand people. The figure compares to 14.7 in La Grange Park, 15 in Darien, 18.2 in Western Springs, 19.7 in Clarendon Hills and DuPage County, 22.6 in Hinsdale, 24.9 in suburban Cook County, 25.5 in La Grange (including unincorporated La Grange Highlands) and 26.4 in Burr Ridge.

As of Sunday, Illinois' coronavirus case count increased to 301,541, up 5 percent from a week earlier. The coronavirus has claimed the lives of 8,791 state residents.

Nationally, 7.4 million people have caught the virus, up 4 percent from the week before. A total of 208,821 people have died from the virus in the United States.

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Meanwhile, Elmhurst Hospital's coronavirus caseload was 14 as of Monday, up three from a week before. In the early weeks of the pandemic, the number hovered around 60.

As of Monday, the number of coronavirus-related deaths at the hospital was 90, the same as the previous week.

Since March 24, 567 patients have been discharged from Elmhurst Hospital following treatment for confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to the hospital. Elmhurst Hospital's patient base covers an area far greater than Elmhurst itself.