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MRH: Seven COVID-positive community members dead since Oct. 2

The Memorial Hospital at Craig.
Cuyler Meade / Craig Press

The mortality rate of COVID-19-positive individuals in Moffat County has skyrocketed in recent days, as Memorial Regional Hospital reports seven people who were positive with the virus died since Oct. 2.

Per the hospital, these deaths included a person in their 30s, a person in their 50s, two in their 60s, a person in their 80s and two in their 90s. Every one was unvaccinated.

“Unvaccinated individuals still account for nearly all of the severe illness, hospitalizations and death in the community,” a release from the hospital read. “During the first wave of COVID in Moffat County, the average age of a person who died from COVID was 84. The average age at the time of death during this wave is 63.”



The positivity rate of COVID-19 tests administered by the hospital was lower this past week than it has been since August, but is still very high. After five consecutive weeks of 32% positivity or above — as high as 38.92% between Sept. 27 and Oct. 3 — the county dipped slightly to 23.53% this past week.

The hospital reports the Delta variant is again surging.



“This current wave of consistently high positivity started at the end of August,” the report reads. “If the national trend holds true, our community could be headed for a decline in cases. Currently most hospitalizations are lagging symptom onset by seven to 10 days.”

But, there’s reason for concern, yet, the hospital says.

“One caveat to the predictive modeling is that Moffat County is entering its tourism high season with hunting,” the release says. “This brings in many new people to our community, and it was this time last year that COVID cases and hospitalizations spiked. In 2020, new COVID cases started increasing in early November, and hospitalizations started rising two weeks later. That wave lasted 7 weeks.”

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