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Area counties are continuing to see new lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases reported, according to the Minnesota Department of Health’s daily update on Tuesday.

Freeborn County had three new cases, increasing its total to 188 cumulative cases. Of that total, 124 are out of isolation and one is hospitalized, the Freeborn County Public Health Department said.

The new cases included two people in their 30s and one in their 40s.

The state health department reported 15 new cases in Mower County, bringing the county’s total cases to 537.

Mower County Emergency Manager Amy Lammey said last week that Mower County Health and Human Services has been working closely with the state department of health and Mayo Clinic Health System because of the rise in positive cases in the county.

“As the state loosens its guidelines and commerce picks up, we are predicting the positive cases will continue,” Lammey said.

“As we look through data, we have found that many people who contract COVID-19 have worked while in their infectious period,” she continued. “This is causing businesses to have positive cases and quarantine some of their staff. Local Public Health is working closely with these businesses to help prevent the spread in the workplace. Mayo Clinic Health System has also worked closely with businesses that have shown a cluster of positive cases. Plans are being made to ramp up testing and assist these businesses in getting their employees tested whether employees are showing symptoms or not.”

As of Thursday, the Hormel Foods plant in Austin had seen roughly 50 cases since the pandemic began, according to Hormel Vice President of Quality Management Richard Carlson. That number does not include Quality Pork Processors employees; however, a StarTribune article has reported that between the two plants there have been 231 diagnosed cases, citing the Minnesota Department of Health.

“At the very beginning of the pandemic, we would have loved to say success would look like zero cases, but that’s not realistic,” Carlson said. “It is one of those things that because of living situations, carpooling and social situations that we have seen an uptick.”

Carlson noted that Hormel has made efforts to provide for worker safety at its plants across the country, such as checking temperatures of employees, implementing barriers for social distancing, increasing sanitization of high-touch surfaces and making sure employees have masks and face shields. Hormel also started the “Keep COVID Out” campaign, which reminds employees to continue safety practices from work out in the community.

Steele County reported no new cases.

Statewide, there were 307 newly reported cases, increasing the total cumulative cases to 28,523. Of the total cases, 24,221 no longer are in isolation.

The state department reported 20 new deaths in Anoka, Blue Earth, Crow Wing, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Sibley, Stearns and Washington counties. There have now been 1,217 deaths across the state, including 968 of residents who resided in long-term care or assisted living facilities.

There are 455 people hospitalized as of today, including 199 in intensive care.

 

Confirmed COVID-19 cases

County	Cases	Deaths
Aitkin	13	0
Anoka	1,627	85
Becker	45	0
Beltrami	21	0
Benton	190	3
Big Stone	12	0
Blue Earth	153	1
Brown	17	2
Carlton	78	0
Carver	257	2
Cass	12	2
Chippewa	53	1
Chisago	70	1
Clay	481	30
Clearwater	3	0
Cook	0	0
Cottonwood	94	0
Crow Wing	86	7
Dakota	1,554	70
Dodge	55	0
Douglas	48	0
Faribault	25	0
Fillmore	20	1
Freeborn	188	0
Goodhue	83	7
Grant	5	0
Hennepin	9,567	686
Houston	5	0
Hubbard	5	0
Isanti	43	0
Itasca	57	11
Jackson	42	0
Kanabec	12	1
Kandiyohi	526	1
Kittson	1	0
Koochiching	9	0
Lac qui Parle	3	0
Lake	1	0
Lake of the Woods	0	0
Le Sueur	50	1
Lincoln	6	0
Lyon	145	2
McLeod	45	0
Mahnomen	6	1
Marshall	12	0
Martin	142	5
Meeker	47	1
Mille Lacs	24	1
Morrison	51	0
Mower	537	2
Murray	41	0
Nicollet	91	11
Nobles	1,597	5
Norman	16	0
Olmsted	727	12
Otter Tail	78	1
Pennington	37	0
Pine	94	0
Pipestone	14	0
Polk	67	2
Pope	10	0
Ramsey	3,626	164
Red Lake	4	0
Redwood	8	0
Renville	8	0
Rice	593	3
Rock	23	0
Roseau	5	0
St. Louis	119	14
Scott	496	2
Sherburne	261	2
Sibley	19	1
Stearns	2,076	17
Steele	173	0
Stevens	1	0
Swift	19	1
Todd	361	2
Traverse	5	0
Wabasha	20	0
Wadena	10	0
Waseca	32	0
Washington	732	36
Watonwan	84	0
Wilkin	11	3
Winona	85	15
Wright	361	2
Yellow Medicine	7	0
Unknown/missing	86	0