Category Archives: Keeping Watch on Earth News

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA, Stay-at-home

Solano COVID numbers shocking – County on lockdown – details…

By Roger Straw, December 16, 2020

A record 372 new positive cases in Solano County in just one day; ACTIVE cases over 2,000 for the first time; 2 new deaths; ICU beds at a dangerous level of only 13% available; and our positivity rate is at 18%.  The virus is spreading here among all age groups.  Solano has come under the Regional stay-at-home order as of tomorrow… See Solano County press release for details.

[Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard (posted on the County website late today, around 8pm).  For a complete archive of County updates, see my Excel ARCHIVE.  ALSO see important daily updates from the state of California at COVID19.CA.GOV, embedded here on the BenIndy at Cases and Deaths AND Hospitalizations AND ICU Beds by REGION.]

Wednesday, December 16: a record of 372 new cases overnight, 2 new deaths.  Since Feb: 14,269 cases, more than 680 hospitalized, 93 deaths.Compare previous report, Tuesday, Dec. 15:Summary

    • Solano County reported a record of 372 (!!) new cases overnight.  As of today, Solano has seen an average increase of 228 (!) new cases per day over the last 14 days! (source: covid19.ca.gov)  Total of 14,269 cases since the outbreak started.
    • Deaths – 2 new deaths reported today, a total of 93 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
    • Active cases – Solano reported a shocking increase of 222 additional active cases today, for a record total of 2,024 active cases.  COMPARE: average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650 – and TODAY we are at 2,024!  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
    • Hospitalizations – CAUTION ON SOLANO HEALTH DEPARTMENT REPORTING: According to Solano Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas, the County “occasionally” updates Age Group hospitalizations retroactively, adding substantial numbers.  Thus, many hospitalizations are never reported as CURRENTLY hospitalized.  Today, the number of CURRENTLY hospitalized persons fell by 11, total of 107.  But it would seem that Solano County performed its “occasional” update today of those hospitalized among age groups, adding 80 newly reported hospitalizations, for a total of 686 persons hospitalized since the outbreak began.  [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below.  For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
    • ICU Beds – Solano County reported only 13% of our ICU beds available today, up from 11% yesterday and still deep in the yellow danger zone.  COVID19-CA.GOV reported today that Solano hospitals had only 11 available ICU beds as of yesterday, December 15.  (For COVID19-CA.GOV info see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County, and for REGIONAL data see COVID-19 ICU Bed Availability by REGION.)
    • Testing – The County reports today that 1,483 residents were tested overnight, a total of 150,746 unduplicated residents have now been tested for COVID-19 since the outbreak began.  33.7% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.
Positive Test Rate – INCREDIBLY HIGH AT 18%

Solano County reported another dangerously high 7-day average positive test rate today of 18.0%, up a bit from yesterday’s 17.8%, far and away over the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus.  The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate has also been on the rise lately, up today from 11.1 to 11.9%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.) 

By Age Group – Surge in case numbers and hospitalizations!
  • Youth 17 and under – 48 new cases today, total of 1,601 cases, representing 11.2% of the 14,269 total cases.  3 new hospitalizations reported today among this age group, total of 17 since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 14 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 192 (!) new cases today, total of 8,323 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents around 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported 25 (!) new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 220 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this young group today, total of 6 deaths.  Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 78 (!) new cases today, total of 2,835 cases.  This age group represents nearly 20% of the 14,269 total cases.  The County reported 21 (!) new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 184 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 16 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 54 (!) new cases today, total of 1,502, representing 10.5% of Solano’s 14,269 total cases.  The County reported 31 (!) new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 265 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  2 new deaths were reported in this age group today.  A total of 71 of our elders have died of COVID, accounting for 76% of Solano’s 93 total deaths.
City Data
  • Benicia added 13 new cases today, total of 393 cases since the outbreak began. 
  • Dixon added 24 new cases today, total of 1000 cases.
  • Fairfield added 81 new cases today, total of 4,180 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 6 new cases today, total of 119 cases.
  • Suisun City added 27 (!) new cases today, total of 994 cases.
  • Vacaville added 71 new cases today, total of 3,108 cases.
  • Vallejo added 158 (!!) new cases today, total of 4,432 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 51 cases.
Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 22% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 22% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 27% of cases, 28% of hospitalizations and 33% of deaths.
More…

The County’s Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight significant portions.  For more, check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, COVID19.CA.GOV, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA

Solano COVID update on December 1 – 83 new cases overnight, test rate 11.9%

[Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard.  For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE.  ALSO see important daily updates from another source, COVID19.CA.GOV: here on the BenIndy at Cases and Deaths, etc. AND Hospitalizations.]

Tuesday, December 1: 83 new cases overnight, no deaths.  Since the outbreak began: 10,731 cases, 603 hospitalized, 81 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, Nov. 30:Summary

  • Solano County reported 83 new cases overnight.  As of today, Solano has seen an average of 112 new cases per day over the last 14 days!  Total of 10,731 cases since the outbreak started.
  • Deaths – no new deaths reported today, a total of 81 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
  • Active cases – Solano reported 52 fewer active cases today, total of 808 active cases.  Despite recent lower numbers, active cases have increased alarmingly lately – COMPARE: average number of Active Cases during October was 284 – today we are at 808!!  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
  • Hospitalizations – (See BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County for State of California data.)  Solano County’s daily update reported 68 currently hospitalized, and indicated that the TOTAL hospitalized since the outbreak began remained steady today, total of 603. [For my manual calculation of total, see age group stats below.]
  • ICU Beds – (See BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County for State of California data.)  The County reported no change in ICU beds available today, remaining at 33%.
  • Testing – The County reports today that 721 residents were tested since yesterday, a total of 127,865 unduplicated residents tested for COVID-19 since the outbreak began.  28.6% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.

Positive Test Rate – still extremely high, 11.9%

Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate fell today from yesterday’s 12.3% to 11.9% – still far and away over the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus.  The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate has also been on the rise lately, and rose substantially today from 6.5% to 7.0%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.) 

By Age Group
  • Youth 17 and under – 9 new cases today, total of 1,231 cases, representing 11.5% of the 10,731 total cases.  No new hospitalizations reported today among this age group.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 14 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 49 new cases today, total of 6,257 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents just under 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 194 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this young group today, total of 6 deaths.  Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 19 new cases today, total of 2,097 cases.  This age group represents over 19% of the 10,731 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 162 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 15 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 6 new cases today, total of 1,140, representing 10.6% of Solano’s 10,731 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today.  A total of 233 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, total of 60 of our elders who died of COVID, accounting for 74% of Solano’s 81 total deaths.
City Data
  • Benicia added 1 new case today, total of 287 cases since the outbreak began. 
  • Dixon added 7 new cases today, total of 745 cases.
  • Fairfield added 18 new cases today, total of 3,243 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 93 cases.
  • Suisun City added 4 new cases today, total of 743 cases.
  • Vacaville added 21new cases today, total of 2,206 cases.
  • Vallejo added 30 new cases today, total of 3,374 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 40 cases.
Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 19% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 12% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 23% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 23% of cases, 26% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 26% of cases, 28% of hospitalizations and 33% of deaths.
More…

The County’s Coronavirus Dashboard is USUALLY full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight significant portions.  For more, check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA

Solano COVID numbers continue to rise: 48 new cases, test rate over 7% first time since Sept 2

[Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard.  For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE.]

Tuesday, November 3: 48 new cases overnight, no new deaths, no new hospitalizations.  Since the outbreak began: 7,849 cases, 532 hospitalized, 76 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, Nov. 2:Summary

  • Solano County reported 48 new cases overnight, much higher than average of late.  Total of 7,849 cases since the outbreak started.
  • Deaths – no new deaths reported today.  Total of 76 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
  • Active cases – Solano reported the same number of ACTIVE case today, total of 393.  Note that only 20 of these 393 people are hospitalized, so there are a lot of infected folks out among us, hopefully quarantined.  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano County has offered no reports on contact tracing.
  • Hospitalizations – Solano County reported the number of currently hospitalized persons decreased by 6 overnight, total of 20.  TOTAL hospitalized since the outbreak began increased dramatically last week, adding 106 previously unreported hospitalizations!  Today the numbers held steady, total of 532 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  For manual calculation of total, see age group stats below.
  • ICU Beds – The County reported fewer ICU beds available today, down from 41% to 35%.  (Still no information about availability of ventilators.)

Positive Test Rate

Solano County reported today that our 7-day average test rate climbed over 7% today for the first time since September 2.  Our rate rose today from 6.9% to 7.1%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.  The much lower and more stable California 7-day test rate has been on the rise lately, held steady today, at 3.2%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve also lags behind current unknown results.) 

By Age Group

  • Youth 17 and under – 3 new cases overnight, total of 892 cases, representing 11.4% of the 7,849 total cases.  No new hospitalizations reported today.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued just over 11% since September 30.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: 1) youth numbers increased steadily and at a faster rate than the other age groups, and 2) youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact 14 youth have now been hospitalized.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 30 new cases overnight, total of 4,619 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents just under 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  (1 fewer hospitalization reported today, total of 178, probably a correction – note 1 more hospitalization among the 50-64 age group.)  No new deaths in this young group today, total of 6 deaths.  Some in this group are surely ignoring public health orders, and many are providing essential services among us.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 9 new cases overnight, total of 1,523 cases.  This age group represents over 19% of the 7,849 total cases.  (1 more hospitalization reported today, total of 150, probably a correction – note 1 fewer hospitalization among the 18-49 age group.)  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 15 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 6 new cases today, total of 812, representing 10.3% of Solano’s 7,849 total cases.  No new hospitalizations reported today, total of 190 since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, total of 55 of our elders who died of COVID.  This group accounts for 55 of the 76 total deaths, or 72%.

City Data

  • Benicia added 1 new cases today, total of 198 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon added 3 new cases today, total of 520 cases.
  • Fairfield added 10 new cases today, total of 2,493 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 63 cases.
  • Suisun City added 3 new cases today, total of 570 cases.
  • Vacaville added 13 new cases today, total of 1,449 cases.
  • Vallejo added 15 new cases today, total of 2,529 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas added 1 new case today, total of 27 cases.

Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 11% of hospitalizations, and 20% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 12% of cases, but 18% of hospitalizations, and 24% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 27% of cases, 29% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 23% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations and 29% of deaths.

More…

The County’s new and improved Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight a report or two.  Check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Keeping Watch on Earth News, Solano County CA

Solano COVID update: 54 new cases overnight, averaging 39 new cases per day over last 3 weeks

[Source: Solano County Coronavirus Dashboard.  For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE.]

This thing is far from over…

Tuesday, October 20: 54 new cases overnight, no new deaths, no new hospitalizations.  Since the outbreak began: 7,171 cases, 405 hospitalized, 74 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, Oct. 19:Summary

  • Solano County reported 54 new cases overnight, total of 7,171 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 2 weeks, Solano reported 547 new cases, average of 39 per day (significantly higher than the previous weeks’ daily averages, and climbing).
  • Deaths – no new deaths today, total of 74 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
  • Active cases – Solano reported 14 additional ACTIVE cases today, total of 284.  Last week, Solano reported over 300 active cases for the first time since September 4.  Note that only 26 of these 284 people are hospitalized, so there are a lot of infected folks out among us, hopefully quarantined.  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano County has offered no reports on contact tracing.
  • Hospitalizations – the number of currently hospitalized persons increased by 2 today, total of 26.  The total number hospitalized since the outbreak started remained steady today, total of 405. (For manual calculation of total, see age group stats below).
  • ICU Beds – the County reported a slight improvement in ICU beds available, up from 38% to 41%.  (Still no information about availability of ventilators.)
  • Testing – The County reports today that 1,018 (!) more residents were tested overnight, new total of 99,232.  (Solano has AVERAGED 500 tested per day over the last 3 weeks.)  Solano has a long way to go; only 22.2% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.  (And even less, considering that some individuals have been tested more than once.)

Positive Test Rate

Solano County reported today that our 7-day average test rate fell today from 6.5% to 6.0%.  Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.  The much more stable California 7-day test rate rose slightly today, from 2.4% to 2.5%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve also lags behind current unknown results.) 

By Age Group

  • Youth 17 and under – 6 new cases today, total of 808 cases, representing 11.3% of the 7,171 total cases.  No new hospitalizations among this age group today, a total of 6 hospitalizations since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group.  But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued just over 11% since September 30, increasing to 11.3% for the first time Monday 10/19.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low.  The significance is this: 1) youth numbers increased steadily and at a faster rate than the other age groups, and 2) youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact 6 youth have now been hospitalized.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 24 new cases today, total of 4,262 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents just under 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations in this age group today, total of 131 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this young age group today, total of 5 deaths.  Some in this group are surely ignoring public health orders, and many are providing essential services among us.  I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 16 new cases today, total of 1,381 cases.  This age group represents 19.3% of the 7,171 total cases (up 0.3% suddenly since 10/15, having held steady at around 19.0% for months before then). No new hospitalizations today, total of 109 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 15 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – Today the County reported 5 new cases, total of 715.  No new hospitalizations, total of 159.  No new deaths, total of 54 of our elders who died of COVID.  This age group’s 715 cases represent 10% of the 7,171 total cases.  In this older age group, 22.2% of cases required hospitalization at one time.  This group accounts for 54 of the 74 deaths, or 73%.

City Data

  • Benicia added 2 new cases today, total of 185 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon held steady today, total of 462 cases.
  • Fairfield added 28 new cases today, total of 2,330 cases.
  • Rio Vista added 1 new case today, total of 57 cases.
  • Suisun City added 6 new cases today, total of 522 cases.
  • Vacaville added 11 new cases today, total of 1,244 cases.
  • Vallejo added only 6 new cases today, total of 2,348 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 23 cases.

Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases, 11% of hospitalizations, and 19% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 18% of hospitalizations, and 24% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 29% of cases, 29% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 22% of cases, 27% of hospitalizations and 30% of deaths.

More…

The County’s new and improved Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight a report or two.  Check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.