Burlington County Health Director Dr. Herb Conaway is urging
county residents and families to continue to take coronavirus-related
precautions during the upcoming holiday weekend.
“We’ve made a lot of progress since the start of the
outbreak and we’re seeing the results as restrictions on things like gyms,
movie theaters and indoor dining are being lifted. But that doesn’t mean we can
let our guard down. It actually means we need to be more vigilant,” said
Conaway. “It’s been a long summer and we want everyone to be able to enjoy the
holiday, but we want it to be done safely. Mask wearing, proper
social-distancing and restrictions on large gatherings cannot be shoved aside
or ignored simply because it’s Labor Day weekend.”
Conaway pointed to recent testing numbers in Burlington
County that showed a small uptick in COVID-19 cases. The number of new daily
cases in the county has risen from an average of 18 cases last week to a daily
average of around 27 new cases each day this week.
The increase includes the 40 new cases on Wednesday and 45
new cases on Thursday, marking the two highest single-day totals since Aug. 4
when 43 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the county.
“We don’t want this uptick to continue and turn into an
outbreak, especially with many schools reopening next week,” Conaway said. “If
everyone follows the rules and takes the proper precautions, we should remain
in good shape. However, it only takes a few reckless parties to put a lot more
people at risk. An indoor wedding where no one wore a mask has so far
caused 143 infections and took one life.”
In addition to urging caution, Conaway reminded residents that free COVID-19 testing remains widely available throughout the County. Check out the Burlington County web page at www.co.burlington.nj.us or download Burlington County Health App for information on times and locations.
Next week the Burlington County Health Department will conduct
COVID-19 testing on Tuesday afternoon (Sep 8th) and Thursday morning
(Sep 10th). Use the following link to schedule an appointment: https://provider.kareo.com/dr-herbert-conaway#?view=booking#booking.
“Testing is still critical for us to control the spread. We
want our residents to know it’s still available and that the results can help
better protect everyone’s family, friends and neighbors,” he said.
To date, the County has tested 8,473 people.
“Lastly, seasonal influenza will soon return. Please
be sure to get your annual flu shot. Vaccination doesn’t cause the flu
and could save your life or someone else’s,” Conaway said.