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March 18
1919 - Fire destroys abandoned second Southern Hotel, built 1878 in Newhall (corner Main & Market) [story]
Second Southern Hotel


The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed 14 new deaths throughout L.A. County, 4,879 new cases countywide and 81 new cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

This new data brings Los Angeles County death totals to 32,385, county case totals to 3,148,370 and Santa Clarita Valley case totals to 82,353, with 480 total SCV deaths from COVID-19 since March of 2020.

There are 920 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 12,204,000 individuals, with 23% of people testing positive.

Today’s positivity rate is 16.5%.

county chart 76

* Number reflects an undercount due to a lag from weekend or holiday reporting.

Data is by date reported by DPH, but does not necessarily represent the date of testing, hospitalization, or death.

Parents Encouraged to Keep Children Up-to-Date on COVID Vaccinations

Children under the age of 18 in L.A. County continue to be significantly impacted by COVID-19, with many who were infected experiencing serious illness or long COVID. To date, there have been 91,935 children under the age of 5, 260,389 children ages 5 to 11 and 255,187 children ages 12 to 17 confirmed with COVID-19.

While most children experience mild illness, there is no way to know in advance how children will be affected by COVID-19. Many children in LA County experienced serious illness and required hospitalization after becoming infected with COVID-19. To date, there have been 1,359 children under the age of 5, 678 children ages 5 to 11, and 1,158 children ages 12 to 17 hospitalized with COVID-19.

Although very rare, COVID-19 cases among children can sometimes result a few weeks later in a very serious, post-infection illness known as Multi-Symptom Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a condition where different body parts become inflamed, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs. In total, over the course of the pandemic, Public Health has confirmed 312 cases of MIS-C.

Tragically, two children under the age of 5, three children ages 5 to 11, and six children ages 12 to 17 have died from COVID-19 in the county since the start of the pandemic.

With the recent rise in cases and the school year ending, LA County is now seeing outbreaks at camps, youth programs, and day care sites as many open for the summer. During the month of June, there were four new outbreaks at day camps/non-K12 programs or day care sites for school-aged children and two new outbreaks at overnight camps.

Since vaccinations provide the best protection against severe illness and MIS-C, parents are urged to make sure that they and their children are up-to-date on their vaccinations and boosters, when eligible. Since eligibility expanded to children under the age of 5, 7,642 doses have been administered through June 30.

Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are available to children 6 months to 17 years. The Moderna vaccine requires two doses, given four to eight weeks apart for children 6 months to 17 years. Boosters for the Moderna vaccine are not currently recommended. The Pfizer vaccine for children ages 6 months to 4 years requires three doses, with three to eight weeks in between the first and second dose, and at least eight weeks between the second and third doses. Boosters for the Pfizer vaccine are currently not recommended for children ages 6 months to 4 years.

The Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5 to 17 years requires two doses, with three to eight weeks in between the first and second dose. Boosters are recommended for this age group at least five months after the second dose. For more information, visit the COVID-19 Vaccine Schedule.

Across the county, there are thousands of locations for children to get vaccinated, including more than 900 vaccination sites offering the vaccines to children under the age of 5. Because some of the pharmacy sites are only licensed to vaccinate children age 3 and older, parents are encouraged to reach out ahead of time to verify hours and availability.

Parents can also visit the Public Health website at VaccinateLACounty.com or VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish) to learn about locations, and schedules for clinics offering these and other COVID-19 vaccines.

For those who have any questions about vaccine safety and effectiveness, please reach out to your pediatrician or clinician or speak with a Public Health staff member at the COVID-19 call center, 1-833-540-0473 between the hours of 8 am and 8:30 pm seven days a week.

Here is a chart that outlines the differences between Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for children.

kids covid vaccine

As a reminder, people, including children, confirmed with COVID-19 must remain home and away from others (isolate) and cannot leave isolation before day 11 unless they have a negative test taken on day five or later, have been fever free for 24 hours, and symptoms are resolved or resolving. Anyone leaving isolation early must continue to wear a mask until day 11 after symptom onset or, if no symptoms developed, after their positive test date.

People who are close contacts to someone infected with COVID-19 must wear a mask when around others for 10 days after their last exposure and if they develop symptoms, stay home and get tested.

“I send my deepest sympathies and wishes of peace and comfort to the many families who have lost a loved one from COVID-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “As families gather for summer barbecues, vacations and camp, the best way to avoid disruptions to summer plans is to be sure that everyone is up-to-date on vaccines, to wear a mask when indoors around others, wash hands frequently, and to stay home and away from others when sick. Although most children experience mild illness from COVID-19, they can still potentially become seriously ill and spread the virus to other family members, making it critically important to vaccinate all eligible household members. This is especially important for our elderly relatives and immunocompromised in our families who are at high risk. Let’s all look forward to enjoying the warm summer weeks ahead by taking steps to protect ourselves and each other.”

A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

To keep workplaces and schools open, residents and workers are asked to:

– Get tested to help reduce the spread, especially if you traveled for the holidays, have had a possible exposure, or have symptoms, or are gathering with people not in your household

– Adhere to masking requirements when indoors or at crowded outdoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status

– Residents are legally required to be isolated if they have a positive COVID test result and vaccinated close contacts with symptoms and unvaccinated close contacts need to be quarantined.

For information on where you can get tested, please visit www.covid19.lacounty.gov/testing/.

For updated isolation and quarantine guidance, please visit www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and are recommended for everyone 5 years old and older to help protect against COVID-19. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. Appointments are not needed at all Public Health vaccination sites and many community sites where first, second, and third doses are available.

To find a vaccination site near you, or to make an appointment, please visit:

www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or

www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).

William S. Hart Union High School District COVID-19 Dashboard

The William S. Hart Union High School District provides ongoing information to our community regarding COVID-19 cases while maintaining confidentiality for our students and staff. The COVID-19 case data below is updated regularly to indicate any currently confirmed COVID-19 positive case in staff members or students by school site. The data below is specific to individuals who have been physically present on a District campus within 14 days of receiving a positive COVID-19 test. The District, in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, conducts contact tracing and directly notifies and provides resources for parents of students identified as close contacts (6 feet or less for 15 cumulative minutes or more).

Note: To see the communication process in the event of a positive COVID-19 case, visit https://www.hartdistrict.org/apps/pages/covid-19dashboard.

Schools Community Dashboard

Hart community 76

Student Dashboard

Hart student 76

Staff Dashboard

Hart staff 76

Santa Clarita Valley Wednesday Update
As of 4 p.m. Wednesday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard reported no additional deaths in the city of Santa Clarita, leaving the total number of deaths from COVID-19 in the SCV at 480.

The following is the community breakdown per L.A. County’s dashboard:

Santa Clarita: 391

Castaic: 31

Acton: 17

Stevenson Ranch: 15

Unincorporated Canyon Country: 9 (revised from 10)

Agua Dulce: 6

Val Verde: 3 (revised from 4)

Valencia: 2

Unincorporated Bouquet Canyon: 2

Elizabeth Lake: 1

Newhall: 1

unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country: 1

Lake Hughes: 1

 

SCV Cases

Of the 82,353 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

Santa Clarita: 60,739

Castaic: 8,389

Stevenson Ranch: 4,818

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 2,974

Acton: 1,650

Val Verde: 918

Agua Dulce: 852

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 783

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 364

Elizabeth Lake: 230

Bouquet Canyon: 166

Lake Hughes: 169

Saugus/Canyon Country: 103

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 92

Sand Canyon: 52

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 37

Placerita Canyon: 17

*Note: The county is unable to break out separate numbers for Castaic and PDC/NCCF because the county uses geotagging software that cannot be changed at this time, according to officials. Click here for the LASD COVID-19 dashboard.

 

California Wednesday

The California Department of Public Health now updates their numbers on Tuesday and Friday. Due to the July 4 holiday California did not issue a report on Tuesday, July 5. The information below is from the most recent data released Wednesday, July 6.

CalifCovid 76

Vaccinations

– 77,630,160 total vaccines administered.

– 84% of the eligible population (5+) has been vaccinated with at least one dose.

– 35,219 people a day are receiving COVID-19 vaccination (average daily dose count over 7 days).

Cases

– California has 9,500,376 confirmed cases to date.

– Wednesday’s average case count is 15,996 (average daily case count over 7 days).

– Unvaccinated people are 5.4 times more likely to get COVID-19 than boosted individuals (June 6, 2022 – June 12, 2022).

Testing

– The testing positivity rate is 15% (average rate over 7 days).

Hospitalizations

– There are 4,035 hospitalizations statewide.

– There are 419 ICU patients statewide.

– Unvaccinated people are 7.5 times more likely to be hospitalized than boosted individuals (June 6, 2022 – June 12, 2022).

Deaths

– There have been 91,795 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

– COVID-19 claims the lives of 17 Californians each day (average daily death count over 7 days).

– Unvaccinated people are 14.5 times more likely to die than boosted individuals (May 30, 2022 – June 5, 2022).

Health Care Workers

As of June 30, local health departments have reported 168,085 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 581 deaths statewide.

Testing Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of June 19 to June 25, the average time patients waited for test results was 0.8 day. During this same time period, 86% of patients received test results in one day and 97% received them within two days.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

As of July 4, there have been 1005 cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported statewide. MIS-C is a rare inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19 that can damage multiple organ systems. MIS-C can require hospitalization and be life threatening.

Additional Updates

Mask Guidance: Under California’s mask guidance, universal masking is required only in specified higher risk settings like hospitals, public transit and congregate living facilities. Unvaccinated persons are required to mask in all indoor public settings. Fully vaccinated individuals are recommended to continue indoor masking when the risk may be high. Workplaces will continue to follow the COVID-19 prevention standards set by CalOSHA. Local health jurisdictions may implement requirements that are stricter than state guidance.

Slow the Spread: Get Vaccinated and Boosted for COVID-19

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection continues as a number of Californians remain unvaccinated and unboosted.

Real-world evidence continues to show that the vaccine is preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Public health officials urge Californians to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

It is recommended that every individual six months of age and older receive their primary COVID-19 vaccine series and booster dose.

It is recommended that every vaccinated person 12 years or older should get a booster as long as they received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least five months ago or they received their Johnson & Johnson vaccine at least two months ago.

Vaccination appointments can be made by visiting myturn.ca.gov or calling 1-833-422-4255. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those under age 18 to receive a vaccination. Visit Vaccinate All 58 to learn more about the safe and effective vaccines available for all Californians 5+.

Your Actions Save Lives

Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

Keep California Healthy
Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

– Get vaccinated when it’s your turn. Californians age 16+ are eligible to make an appointment.

– If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches), call your health care provider.

– If you believe you have been exposed, get tested. Free, confidential testing is available statewide.

– Keep gatherings small and outdoors and follow state and local public health guidance.

– Wear a mask and get the most out of masking – an effective mask has both good fit and good filtration.

– Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

– Delay non-essential travel outside of California until you are fully vaccinated. Follow California’s travel advisory.

– Avoid close contact with people who are sick and stay home from work and school if you feel ill.

– Add your phone to the fight by signing up for COVID-19 exposure notifications from CA Notify.

– Answer the call or text if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or your local health department tries to connect.

Additional data and udpates:

Tracking COVID-19 in California

State Dashboard – Daily COVID-19 data

County Map – Local data, including tier status and ICU capacity

Data and Tools – Models and dashboards for researchers, scientists, and the public

Blueprint for a Safer Economy– Data for establishing tier status

COVID-19 Race & Ethnicity Data – Weekly updated Race & Ethnicity data

Cases and Deaths by Age Group – Weekly updated Deaths by Age Group data

Health Equity Dashboard – See how COVID-19 highlights existing inequities in health

Tracking Variants – Data on the variants California is currently monitoring

Safe Schools for All Hub – Information about safe in-person instruction

School Districts Reopening Map – data on public schools and reported outbreaks

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

California Department of Public Health

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Spanish

World Health Organization

L.A. County residents can also call 2-1-1.

What to Do if You Think You’re Sick
Call ahead: If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough or shortness of breath), call your health care provider before seeking medical care so that appropriate precautions can be taken. More than 85 community testing sites also offer free, confidential testing: Find a COVID-19 Testing Site.

For more information about what Californians can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19, visit Coronavirus (COVID-19) in California.

California continues to issue guidance on preparing and protecting California from COVID-19. Consolidated guidance is available on the California Department of Public Health’s Guidance webpage.

CountyCovid617

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