By JOSH RESNEK
Everett’s new cases of the virus are coming in at over 40 a day, with Monday’s total of 45 new cases higher than any time during the first shutdown in March.
Sunday there were 47 casees.
Total cases this week are expected to surge well beyond the 300 mark – a record for one week.
Death statistics for the city are unavailable.
They have not been published in weeks by the local health department.
However, it is believed there has been a spate of deaths from the virus during this present surge period.
When last released many weeks back, the death toll in Everett stood at 35.
Everett City Hall reopened for business Monday. It had been shut down, again, for a week, following reports of apparent virus infections among several employees.
Everett remains in the “Red Zone,” among about 70 cities and towns where the spread of the virus is considered rampant and transmission of the virus is very likely if caution is not taken, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Local officials continue to plead with all residents to wear masks and to socially distance one another to prevent the spread of the virus.
Local, state, and national officials are all predicting another surge in virus infections, hospitalizations, and deaths as a result of the get-togethers that took place over the Thanksgiving holiday.
If experience is a roadmap, in two weeks, figures will rise dramatically, again.
Anyone dining with those who traveled from other parts of the nation to be at home for the holiday are urged to get themselves tested immediately.
Older people with pre-existing conditions are urged to get tested but only if they begin to experience symptoms of the virus.
There is no public word yet on when and if the city will receive anti-virus vaccines that are expected to be distributed in two to three weeks.
Also, in question, is exactly how and where the vaccine would be distributed given the complexities of the process.