Big drop in new county COVID-19

The number of new COVID-19 cases in Trempealeau County took a significant dip last week, falling under 100 for the first time since late-October.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported 67 new cases in Trempealeau County last year. While there were also fewer tests issued, the rate in which people tested positive also dropped from 44 percent to 31 percent.

In addition to having fewer new cases, the Trempealeau County Health Department did not report a single death from the virus last week. The death total remained at 24, according to the health department with seven people hospitalized as of Monday. The DHS, however, reported two more deaths and has listed 28 confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Trempealeau County with two more deaths being listed as probably due to the virus.

Despite the drop in the number of new cases, the county has continued to rise in terms of COVID-19 rate. As of Monday, the county had 9,941 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people, according to the DHS. That is the fifth-highest rate in the state, surpassing Brown County to crack the top five. Neighboring Jackson County currently has the third-highest rate at 11,272 cases per 100,000.

Independence had the most new cases in Trempealeau County last week with 13, one more than Eleva while Whitehall had 11 and Galesville had 10. The numbers were low across the rest of the county, both Arcadia and Strum had seven new cases, Osseo, six; Trempealeau, five; Blair, three and Ettrick, two.