Wayland Union Schools is having its last week of hybrid instruction in preparation for transition to all-day, every day in-person classes, as statistics continue to look positive in the battle against Covid-19.
The average number of cases over seven days in Allegan County has fallen from 43.7 a month ago (Jan. 9) to 12.4. In Michigan, the percentage of positive tests in new cases is hovering around 4 percent.
However, the county also has reported 10 deaths over the past two weeks, bring the total to 105 since the pandemic began last March. The number of cases have been pegged at 7,070, with 172 hospitalizations and 6,185 regarded as having recovered.
Hopkins schools has announced it will transition to in-person classroom instruction starting March 8. Martin schools continue their five-day in-person classes they initiated last August.
The Allegan County Health Department as of last September had reported just six Coronavirus deaths, but the figure steadily rose to 50 just before the Christmas holiday and then continued to rise afterward.
Though now reaching the milestone of 15,000 Coronavirus deaths, Michigan has done better than most of the nation since the holiday break. Restaurants opened at 25 percent capacity Monday, Feb. 1, and some high school, sports, such as bowling and swimming are in full swing. Basketball, wrestling and competitive cheer resume competition this week.
The Health Department put together its first of a series of vaccination clinics at the Wayland High School gym, providing shots to about 1,000 people.
Those who live or work in Allegan County and are interested in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine should sign up through the “I Want the COVID-19 Vaccine” form on www.allegancounty.org/covid. Once they are signed up, they will receive an e-mail from ACHD about when they can schedule an appointment.
An ACHD spokesperson said, “Due to the overwhelming response and limited vaccine availability, eligible individuals may not receive an email for three to four weeks. If individuals need confirmation that they are on the registry, please e-mail covidvaccine@allegancounty.org