Wilmington Reports 75 Active Coronavirus Cases

WILMINGTON, MA — Wilmington has 75 active coronavirus cases, the Health Department reported Sunday. The town has not had a caseload this large since early May, when it was dealing with outbreaks at three long-term care facilities.

Health Director Shelly Newhouse said the town has at least 100 residents in quarantine for potential coronavirus exposure, and may have as many as 150.

She could not give an exact count of quarantines because "it changes hourly," Newhouse said.

Newhouse told the Board of Selectmen Nov. 9 that the town has had a lot of within-family spread.

"The trend that I'm seeing is whole families are getting it," Newhouse said. "Twenty- to thirty-year-olds get it at small gatherings, then they bring it home and give it to their families."

The town did not have any cases at nursing homes, at that point, she said.

The town was labeled moderate-risk by the state last week. Its positive test rate was 2.76 percent over the last two weeks, below the 5 percent threshold to be deemed high-risk.

The Health Department shared guidance from the state on celebrating Thanksgiving. Residents are advised to continue to follow masking and distancing guidelines, to avoid sharing food and to avoid gathering with high-risk people.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.