Significant increase in COVID cases in Dartmouth and New Bedford public schools

Linda Roy, Standard-Times
·3 min read
New Bedford residents can pick up a free at-home COVID-19 testing kit while supplies last, city officials have announced. In this file photo, UMass Dartmouth nursing student Abagael Biello performs a rapid COVID-19 test at the Acushnet Council on Aging on S Main Street in Acushnet.

COVID-19 cases in New Bedford shot up by nearly double the number of cases reported the week before. Cases in New Bedford and Dartmouth public schools also rose significantly higher.

The number of new cases in the city was 229 cases, compared with 128 new cases the week before, as reported by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The number of students in New Bedford Public Schools increased from 31 to 44 students, and from 13 to 34 staff members.

Dartmouth Public Schools cases sharply increased from 16 to 75 students and 3 to 19 staff infected with the virus.

According to data from the MDPH as of May 12, the following cities and towns in the Greater New Bedford area have reported the difference in new positive COVID-19 cases since the previous week’s report:

Acushnet: 21 (compared to 20 the week before)

Dartmouth: 76 (compared to 73 the week before)

Fairhaven: 45 (compared to 42 the week before)

New Bedford: 229 (compared to 128 the week before)

Cases of COVID in Greater New Bedford schools

Here are the numbers from May 5 to May 11, 2022, from the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

New Bedford Public Schools: 44 students, 34 staff (compared to 31 students, 13 staff the week before)

Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical: 9 students, 9 staff (compared to 9 students, 3 staff the week before)

Acushnet: 3 students, 0 staff (compared to 8 students, 2 staff the week before)

Dartmouth: 75 students, 19 staff (compared to 16 students, 3 staff the week before)

Fairhaven: 18 students, 7 staff (compared to 24 students, 2 staff the week before)

Hospitalizations

According to state data as of May 12, St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford has a total of 13 confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations including ICU. The hospital has a total of zero confirmed COVID-19 ICU Census. There were 10 confirmed cases and zero ICU census for the previous week.

Local Vaccination clinics:

Monday, May 16:

Former Fire Station 11 (754 Brock Ave.) – 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, boosters, vaccines for children 5 – 11, boosters for teens 12-17

Friday, May 20:

PAACA (360 Coggeshall St.) – 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, boosters, w/ pediatric vaccines for children 5 – 11 years old & boosters for teens 12-17

Saturday, May 21:

Andrea McCoy Recreation Center (181 Hillman St.) – 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, boosters, vaccines for children 5 – 11, boosters for teens 12-17

Monday, May 23:

Former Fire Station 11 (754 Brock Ave.) – 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, boosters, vaccines for children 5 – 11, boosters for teens 12-17

Friday, May 27:

PAACA (360 Coggeshall St.) – 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., Pfizer, Moderna, J&J, boosters, w/ pediatric vaccines for children 5 – 11 years old & boosters for teens 12-17

No clinic will be held at the Andrea McCoy Recreation Center on Saturday, May 28, or at the former Fire Station 11 on Monday, May 30, due to the Memorial Day holiday.

Standard-Times digital producer Linda Roy can be reached at lroy@s-t.com Follow her on Twitter at @LindaRoy_SCT. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: New Bedford and Dartmouth publics schools see jump in COVID cases