LAKEWOOD, NJ – There’s a new outbreak of COVID-19 in Ocean County and more than half of all new cases are being reported in Lakewood Township. In Lakewood alone, there have been 473 new COVID-19 cases in the past 10 days, making up 56% of the county’s 768 overall new cases during that same time period. The Star Ledger Reported that if Ocean County was a state, it’s daily COVID-19 positivity rating would earn it a spot on Governor Phil Murphy’s mandatory 14-day quarantine list.
Lakewood’s case total this past week brings it back to pandemic levels seen during March through May of this year.
Today Persichili said cases have increased in Ocean County and she reviews all new cases daily. Since Monday, Ocean County had 468 news cases, leading the state.
“The main age group for the cases in Ocean and Monmouth are 18 to 29 years old,” Persichili said. “In Ocean County we’re tracking between 100 and 150 new cases per day and of that number, at least half or more are in Lakewood and positivity rate in Lakewood is also increasing, which is also a concern.”
Persichili said additional contact tracers have been dispatched to Ocean County this week and more will be sent next week to figure out exactly what is going on in Lakewood to cause the latest outbreak.
In Monmouth County, Persichili said house gatherings and workplaces were common causes of the spread of the virus there. Another spike in Gloucester County correlated with college housing at Rowan University.
