Hotel In Worcester For Coronavirus Patients Moved Suddenly

WORCESTER, MA — A hotel in Worcester that was being used to house low-income people affected by coronavirus was shut down and moved suddenly on Wednesday, officials said. The move was done due to an "environmental issue" at the Quality Inn along Oriole Way.

The state opened the facility on May 11, the sixth hotel across the state being used to house either the homeless or low-income people who need distance from someone in their household who has been diagnosed with coronavirus.

There were 16 people staying at the Quality Inn as of Tuesday. They have been moved to another state-run hotel shelter in Northampton.

City officials did not elaborate on what the environmental issue at the Quality Inn was.

Worcester also saw a sizeable increase in coronavirus cases on Wednesday, adding 102 new ones. That's due to a lag in the state's coronavirus tracking system, City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. said. Some cases are from several weeks ago, he said.

Coronavirus deaths at city hospitals ticked up by four to 232. Hospitalizations dropped by four people to 231.