Door County Reports Second COVID-19-related Death

Door County reported its second death related to COVID-19 Monday. The patient was in their 70s. The Door County Public Health Department is not releasing further details about the case. 

The county reported two additional cases of COVID-19 as well, bringing the total to 12. The health department has not determined if the cases are a result of community spread. 

Dr. Jim Heise, the Chief Medical Officer at Door County Medical Center, spoke about the severity of the virus in a Facebook Live session Monday evening. 

“The two patients who passed away were the sickest patients I have ever come across in my career,” he said. “It really gives me a healthy respect…If people get sick from this, it can do all kinds of things to the body.”

Wisconsin now reports 6,081 cases of COVID-19 and 281 deaths. Nearby Brown County now reports 853 cases, with 299 positive tests per 100,000 people, more than any other area of the state. 

The state now says it has the capacity to test almost 11,000 people per day, near the goal of 12,000 set by Gov. Tony Evers when he extended the Safer at Home order last week.

The percent of positive tests out of tests given continues to hold steady. Monday’s 7.6 percent positive rate was the lowest since April 9, but the number has fluctuated between 8.5 percent and 11.9 percent over the last three weeks. Evers said that trend will be a key indicator of when to reopen more businesses.

The state has now posted an online dashboard of gating criteria for reopening here>>

Heise said the outbreaks at meat-packing plants in Brown County are an indication of how the virus spreads through people working in close quarters. 

“One person gets sick and comes to work, and infects others, and then it works backwards to the families of those workers when they get home,” he said. 

In the Facebook Live session with Door County Public Health Manager Sue Powers, Heise and Powers confirmed that no cases have been tied to long-term care centers in Door County.