One More Westfield Resident Passes Away From COVID; Cases Show Delta Variant Rise

WESTFIELD, NJ — Amid the rise of the highly transmissible Delta variant of COVID-19, one more Westfield resident has passed away from the virus, a local official said last week.

"Sadly, I am ... reporting the death of an 84-year-old resident, bringing our total number of COVID fatalities to 61," said Westfield Mayor Shelley Brindle Friday.

From Sept. 17 to this past Thursday, 42 new cases of the virus were confirmed in town, according to Westfield Regional Health Commission figures shared in the newsletter. A third were people under 18.

The numbers are still much lower than this past winter, when vaccinations were not yet available to much of the population. In fact, during the month of January 2021, 483 cases were reported in Westfield, or more than 100 per week.

By this past June, as vaccinations took effect, the town went 10 days without a new case.

The highly transmissible Delta variant has caused a rise this summer, medical professionals say. Of cases diagnosed in the state in the last four weeks, 99.3 percent were the Delta variant, the state says (see the "variants" tab).

Medical professionals say that COVID vaccines are 95 percent effective against the virus, and while vaccinated people may have "breakthrough cases," there is a lower chance of hospitalization or death for those vaccinated.

In fact, recent charts from one group of North Jersey hospitals show a high ratio of unvaccinated to vaccinated patients among those in their hospitals who are fighting COVID.

The statistics by age for Westfield cases were:

• Age 9 and under: 10 cases
• Age 10-19: 5 cases
• Age 20-29: 5 cases
• Age 30-39: 5 cases
• Age 40-49: 3 cases
• Age 50-59: 9 cases
• Age 60-69: 2 cases
• Age 70-79: 3 cases
• Age 80-89: No cases
• Age 90 and above: No cases

People under 12 still cannot be vaccinated.

Brindle said Friday that more than 5.8 million New Jersey residents are fully vaccinated. New Jersey has 6.3 million residents over 18, meaning most have been vaccinated.

Who's Vaccinated In Westfield?

In Union County, 394,864 (70.9 percent of the total population) have received one dose of vaccine, and 349,762 (62.8 percent of the total population) are fully vaccinated, Brindle said.

In Westfield, 98 percent of those 65 and older, 97 percent of those 30 and older, 99 percent of the adult population (over 18), 95 percent of those 12 and older, and 79 percent of the entire population has been vaccinated with at least one dose, Brindle said.

In terms of fully vaccinated residents, 92 percent of those 65 and older, 92 percent of those 30 and older, 93 percent of people over 18, 89 percent of those 12 and older, and 74 percent of the entire population are fully vaccinated.

Any resident interested in receiving the vaccine can call 908-789-4070. A list of upcoming pop up clinics can be found on the Health Department website. You can also try ucnj.org, or Atlantic Health System at atlantichealth.org.

As of Sunday night, 684,884 Americans have died from COVID.

On Saturday, Sept. 25, 1,068 people were hospitalized in New Jersey battling coronavirus, 129 of them on ventilators to help them breathe.

Read More About COVID And NJ:

• The Latest Data, Details On Breakthrough COVID-19 Cases In NJ
• COVID Hospitalizations Spike In NJ As Delta Variant Spreads
• Mayor: Westfield Had One Coronavirus Death In July
• NJ Mom Urges: Please Listen to COVID 'Long-Haulers'
• 4 Things To Know About The Delta Variant Of Coronavirus In NJ
• New Jersey Town Says: Get Vaccinated Or No Spaghetti For You
• Rise In Child COVID Hospitalizations Prompts Vaccination Plea
• NJ Hospital Preps For COVID Surge As Kids Set To Return To School

More Information

• 98 percent to 99 percent of recent COVID deaths were unvaccinated people, according to one study earlier this summer.
• Here is information on vaccine side effects, including the most rare but severe effects.
• COVID survivors may suffer from long-term symptoms.

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