COVID cases rise slightly; outbreak closes local business

Carly Newton, The Press-Republican, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
·3 min read

Jul. 20—PLATTSBURGH — According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 community levels remain "low" across the tri-county area, but the virus is still negatively impacting local businesses.

On Monday, Dennis Arthur, owner of State of Mind, a smoke shop located at 319 B Cornelia St., had to temporarily close his doors, because his entire staff of three, who were all vaccinated, tested positive for COVID-19.

"As a business owner, I wasn't aware that it was such an issue right now. If I knew it was, I would have directed my staff to wear masks and be more cautious," Arthur said.

"Up until this point, I didn't have anyone with COVID, and I feel like everyone has kind of let their guard down. It would be good to have the information out there that it's not over."

STAFF TO BE MASKED

When he reopens his doors July 25, his staff will, once again, be required to wear masks.

"And all the stuff that has kept us safe up until this point," Arthur said.

"When they dropped all the mask mandates, we still wore masks for quite awhile after that, but I just wish we would have continued."

Customers, on the other hand, will not be required to wear masks.

Arthur said after he was "blindsided" by the outbreak of COVID at his business, he reached out to other business owners to warn them, because State of Mind's closure will cost him $30,000.

"I called and contacted all my friends who have businesses and just told them they should step their precautions up and go back to the old ways, rather than the new, because it's definitely very present still," he said.

"They've all implemented masks again as well, because they knew how crazy we were and how cautious we were...I just don't want to see fellow business owners go through the same thing as us; it's devastating financially for us."

COUNTY UPDATE

Local health departments collectively reported an increase of 24 COVID-19 cases from the prior seven-day period.

Clinton County Health Department reported 117 new cases from July 10, to July 16, all of which were lab-processed cases only.

Franklin County Health Department reported 97 new cases from July 12, to July 18, which included at-home positive test results reported to the department from residents.

Additionally, the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe's (SRMT) COVID-19 Response Team reported 38 new cases from July 11, to July 18, with 15 cases still active Monday.

Essex County Health Department is no longer reporting a weekly COVID-19 update, and instead will release its report on the first of each month.

"The decision to transition to monthly reporting was done in concert with our Essex County Board of Supervisors and with consideration given to the current stage of the pandemic. We are unable at this time to provide more frequent updates with COVID-19 data; however, this information can still be accessed at https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/positive-tests-over-time-region-and-county," ECHD Program Coordinator Andrea Whitmarsh said.

"If situation arises that warrants a return to more frequent reporting, we will absolutely change from our current practice."

TESTING, VACCINES

COVID-19 testing options can be found on Page A8.

Resources for COVID-19 vaccines in the North Country area are listed on Page A8 and online at pressrepublican.com.

Email: cnewton@pressrepublican.com

Twitter: CarlySNewton