Wear A Mask, Keep Social Circles Small, Gov’t Advises

Connecticut’s second wave of the COVID-19 virus continues. The state’s 7‑day positivity rate is 5.6 percent.

At a press conference Monday hosted by Gov. Ned Lamont, Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith from the Yale School of Public Health, the newly appointed co-chair of President-Elect Biden’s Coronavirus Task Force, urged the public to wear masks and to keep social circles small. Press play on the video above.

Nunez-Smith said while numbers such as hospitalizations and cases are on the rise, it won’t continue to do so if people follow the guidelines, especially as Thanksgiving approaches.

Lamont and Nunez-Smith both said the public needs to remain vigilant, and characterized it as a way to help doctors and nurses who have been working their fingers to the bone in Connecticut since March.

Although no new closures were announced Monday, Lamont said he would be meeting with governors in Massachusetts and New York to talk about whether additional limitations are needed. The governor hinted that additional closures could impact indoor dining at restaurants along with gyms, places that continue to spread COVID-19, officials said.

Locally, COVID-19 continues to impact the lower Naugatuck Valley.

Derby City Hall is scheduled to open again Tuesday morning after two city employees tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend. The employees were exposed to COVID-19 outside of the workplace, according to city officials.

Derby Public Library is operating in limited capacity and providing curbside service. The building is not open to the public.

Both buildings were closed Monday and cleaned. The library had been closed due to a potential COVID-19 exposure.

A third Derby employee who was suspected to have COVID-19 has tested negative, Derby Mayor Rich Dziekan’s office said Monday.

Meanwhile, in Ansonia, where students are learning online though the New Year, Schools Superintendent Joseph DiBacco sent a letter Monday saying a person connected to Ansonia High School had tested positive for COVID-19.

Seymour Town Hall is open, but with limited staffing and public access. Seymour officials are asking the public to call town hall for appointments and questions. The phone number is 203 – 888-2511.

The Seymour Community Center is closed. There is virtual and/or drive through programming happening.

Seymour Public Library is also closed, but curbside pickup available. Call the library to submit a request. The phone number is 203 – 888-3903.

The state uses a color-coded, three-tiered system to identify places where COVID-19 transmission is on the rise. Red alert” towns are communities where the average daily positivity rate is at least 15 cases a day for two weeks.

Here’s a look at the COVID-19 rates in other Valley towns, as of last Thursday.

Ansonia
36.2 on Nov. 12
95 cases in period reported
Per capita rate was 27.1 on Nov. 5 and 19.5 on Oct. 29

Beacon Falls
24.3
21 cases reported
Rate was 8.1 on Nov. 5

Derby
12.6 on Oct. 29, 17.1 on Nov. 5. and 34.2 on Nov. 12.

Naugatuck
34.2
150 cases
Rate was 19.2 on Nov. 5

Oxford
15.7
29 cases
Rate was 10.3 on Nov. 5

Seymour
32
74 cases in period reported
Rate was 17.7 on Nov. 5 and 14.3 on Oct. 29

Shelton
26.4
152 cases in period reported
Rate was 15.5 on Nov. 5

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