The Allegan County Health Department reported Friday that three people have died this week from the Covid-19 virus, bringing the total to 308 since the pandemic began and suggesting the crisis may be past its peak.

The apparent slowdown in the death toll was welcome news after another spike was seen in the county since the holiday break.

The daily average of new Covid cases over a seven-day period now is 170.9, a slight decrease from the 178 announced last Friday, Jan. 21. However, it is still significantly greater than Dec. 29, when the daily average was just 51.1.

The rate of positivity in testing now is 35.1 percent, about four percentage points than the figure reported last Friday and well above the 3% health officials have cited as manageable.

Total hospitalizations since March 2020 are pegged at 417 and there have been 25,333 cases reported in Allegan County since the pandemic began. A total of 20,275 people have been identified officially as recovered.

The most recent leap in number of cases can be attributed to the new Omicron variant, which much more highly contagious than others, such as Delta.

With the spread increasing rapidly, the Martin school district and Wayland High School last week called off in-person instruction, opting instead for virtual instruction via the Internet.

Wayland Middle School transitioned to remote instruction Friday because of an abundance of staff illnesses, but is expected to be back in business in person Monday.