North Andover Reports 46 Cases, Residents Get Alert From State

NORTH ANDOVER, MA — North Andover reported 46 coronavirus cases, Monday, up seven from Thursday. Residents received a wireless emergency alert about coronavirus safety from the state, Monday night.

The alert noted that the virus is a serious threat in North Andover and asked that residents wear masks, wash their hands, keep their distance, not share food, drinks or utensils, stay home if sick, get tested and stop gathering. Matching alerts went out in 22 communities across the state.

According to the town's update Monday, 13 of the 46 active cases, fewer than 30 percent, are part of to the Merrimack College outbreak.

The state introduced a new label last week, high-risk with an asterisk, for high-risk communities like North Andover where more than 10 cases and 30 percent of cases over the previous two weeks could be attributed to a cluster. As of last week's town-by-town data, 14 of the town's 40 cases, 35 percent, were part of the college cluster.

The state plans to release additional data on clusters with Thursday's town level release.

The town has now reported 645 cases and 44 deaths since the virus arrived in Massachusetts.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.