Chatham's Latest COVID-19 Case Numbers Through Jan 21

Jennifer Jean Miller
Updated ·2 min read

CHATHAM, NJ — COVID-19 cases in Morris County seem to be ebbing slightly, with numbers on Chatham schools’ coronavirus dashboard possibly showing a downward trend in case counts.

This drop is also reflective of the COVID-19 Activity Level Report (CALI) for the northwest region, which includes totals from Morris, Passaic, Sussex, and Warren counties. Though the region is still "red" or "high," on the Jan. 8 report, the regional case rate was 255.97 per 100,000. For the week of Jan. 15, it was 121.49.

In Chatham's schools, the case count between Dec. 15 and Jan. 10 had been about 500, Superintendent Michael LaSusa said at the district’s first board of education meeting, on the same day. The high school, which had a positive case count of 213 students and staff combined between Dec. 18 and Jan. 14, showed a total of 9, between Jan. 15 and 21. In those same timeframes, the middle school had 137 cases through Jan. 14, and 23 since Jan. 15.

The school district’s most current figures are below:

Case counts within the Chatham schools through Jan. 21. (Courtesy School District of the Chathams)
Case counts within the Chatham schools through Jan. 21. (Courtesy School District of the Chathams)


On Jan. 18 — the same day that the virtual option in all of the schools was suspended — LaSusa told Patch that the attendance rate was at 97 percent. The one-way, livestream remains for students who tested positive for COVID-19, or are quarantined from a school-related exposure.

Borough hall, however, has stayed closed to the public since Jan. 3, following the uptick of coronavirus cases county and statewide. There is a contactless system in place, with a drop box at the building for permit applications, and mail.

See below for Chatham borough and townships' cumulative case counts since the pandemic’s start in March 2020:

Towns

Jan. 21

Jan. 14

Jan. 7

Dec. 29

Chatham borough

1,324

1,269

1,114

913

Chatham township

1,626

1,586

1,408

1,174

See figures below between the two Northwest region CALI reports:

Jan. 15

Jan. 8

Case Rate (per 100,000)

121.49

255.97

Percent COVID-Like Illness (CLI)

8.50

12.05

Percent Positivity

24.69

35.10


See positive COVID-19 totals for Morris County (figures since March 2020). The case tally comes from the county's website, with the deaths from the state's dashboard:

Jan. 21

Jan. 14

Jan. 7


Cases

89,582

85,274

78,036

Deaths

1,150 (On Jan. 22)

1,109

1,086


Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.

This article originally appeared on the Chatham Patch