Salem Coronavirus Numbers Take Turn For Worse

SALEM, MA — A month that will see thousands of visitors flock to Salem for Halloween-related activities in the holiday's unofficial hometown started with some cautionary news in the battle against the coronavirus.

The state's newest numbers releases Wednesday night had Salem's test-positive rate on the rise for the first time in nearly two months.

According to state data, Salem's test-positive rate increased to 1.33 percent after it was 1.1 percent one week ago. Salem has 5.3 cases per 100,000 residents this past week after being at 4.0 the previous two weeks.

The rise comes after Gov. Charlie Baker praised Salem for dropping all the way from a "red" hot spot community in August to the cusp of a green "safe" community. Baker said on Monday that Salem was a "green" community, but it never quite cleared that hurdle in the weekly report and remains a "yellow" caution community in the state's weekly interactive map.

Twenty-three communities were designated high-risk in the new town-by-town data released by the state Wednesday, up from 15 the week before. New rules announced by the state Wednesday mean that those towns, plus others that were high-risk in the last two updates, cannot move on to the next phase of reopening. The communities were marked high-risk, or red, due to more than eight confirmed COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over the past two weeks.

The Salem Board of Health on Tuesday decided to put the breaks on some of the easing of restrictions Baker has allowed over the past week - keeping the city in step one of phase 3 of the state's reopening plan. That means the maximum amount of people at a restaurant table will remain at six as it expands to 10 throughout much of the state, and the public gathering limit outdoors remains at 25 in Salem as it increases to 50 statewide.

Salem and Salem State University officials have also warned college students against big gatherings after a pair of Friday night police calls that led to arrests. Police said there were more than 50 students at one apartment party on Becket Street.

More Salem Patch Coverage: Salem To Keep Strict Coronavirus Restrictions Through Halloween

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