Outbreak At NH Long-Term Care Facility Ends; Another Death: Data

CONCORD, NH — State health officials announced Thursday that a coronavirus outbreak at a long-term case facility in Windham had officially ended.

The Warde Health Center Windham was moved out of outbreak status after the discovery of three residents and two staffers who had contracted COVID-19. There are three institutional associated outbreaks that are still active in New Hampshire: The Bedford Hills Center, where 15 have died as well as 61 residents and 24 staffers were infected, the Pine Rock Manor in Warner where two people have died, 44 residents, and nine staffers have contracted the virus, and St. Teresa Rehabilitation and Nursing Center Manchester, where 19 residents and five staffers caught the virus.

Officials also reported the 470th fatality due to or because of complications from COVID-19 in the Granite State — a man from who was 80 years of age or older and lived in a long-term care setting in Hillsborough County.

"We offer our sympathies to the family and friends," the State Joint Information Center said. "In New Hampshire since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 9,994 cases of COVID-19 diagnosed with 765 (8 percent) of those having been hospitalized."

Another 82 new positive test results were found by the state after collecting nearly 9,000 polymerase chain reaction specimens Wednesday with Thursday's numbers upgraded slightly. A little more than 400 tests are pending for a daily positivity rate of 0.8 percent.

Of the new cases, 12 were children and 56 percent were female. The state is still investigating three of the new cases with 12 cases in total still being eyed by state officials. The new cases reside in Rockingham County, 28, with 14 who live in Hillsborough County outside of Manchester and Nashua, seven in Merrimack County, and eight in Nashua. Manchester currently has the most active cases in the state — 98, followed by Nashua (64), Bedford (55), Concord (43), and Warner (42). Portsmouth has 24, Salem has 21, Londonderry has 19, and Merrimack has 18 active cases. Windham has nine cases, Exeter and Hampton have eight, Milford has seven, North Hampton has five, and Amherst has between one and four cases.

In New Hampshire, 323,173 people have been tested via 561,032 PCR tests. Approximately 4,200 people are under public health monitoring.

Several K-12 schools have reported new COVID-19 cases. St. Paul's School in Concord reported a second active new case; the Matthew Thornton Elementary School in Londonderry reported its second active case; and the Boscawen Elementary School and the Conway Elementary School reported their first cases Thursday. There are 65 positive test results connected to schools and school activities.

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• COVID-19 Recoveries Back At 87%; 85 New Positive Test Results
• Part 2: Nursing Home Ratings In New Hampshire

Stop The Spread Of COVID-19

The COVID-19 virus is spread through respiratory droplets, usually through coughing and sneezing, and exposure to others who are sick or might be showing symptoms.

Health officials emphasize residents should follow these recommendations:

• Avoid any domestic and international travel, especially on public transportation such as buses, trains, and airplanes.
• Practice social distancing. Stay at least 6 feet from other people, including distancing while in waiting areas or lines.
• When you can't practice 6 feet of social distancing, wear a face covering.
• Anyone who is told to self-quarantine and stay at home due to exposure to a person with confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19 needs to stay home and not go out into public places.
• If you are 60 years or older or have chronic and underlying health conditions, you need to stay home and not go out.
• Avoid gatherings of 10 people or more.
• Employers should work from home as much as possible.
• There is increasing evidence that the virus can survive for hours or possibly days on surfaces. People should clean frequently touched surfaces, including door handles, grocery carts and grocery basket handles, etc.

Take the same precautions as you would if you were sick:

• Stay home and avoid public places.
• Wear a face covering.
• Cover mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
• Wash hands frequently.
• Disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

More information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services about coronavirus can be found here on the department's website.

• Guidance to schools can be found can be found here.
• Instructions for returning travelers to self-observe for symptoms of COVID-19 are available are available here.
• For more information on COVID-19 in NH, visit its site here.
• For the latest information from the CDC, visit its site here.
• To access the state's COVID-19 data dashboard, click on this link here.
• To access the state's COVID-19 Interactive Map Dashboard, click on this link here.

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