The Minnesota Department of Health has confirmed the first official case of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus, in Crow Wing County.
MDH informed the county of the confirmed case late Tuesday, March 31, and said the resident is a man in his 20s and it doesn’t appear to be travel related. The individual is isolated at home with home contacts. This new case is the first resident of Crow Wing County with a confirmed COVID-19 test.
An earlier case of COVID-19 confirmed in Crow Wing County was an individual who did not live in Crow Wing County but was in the area temporarily. He will be counted in a different county in Minnesota and is at home there in quarantine.
“We take this very serious and are mobilizing efforts to decrease exposure to others in the community,” Crow Wing County Public Health Supervisor Michelle Moritz said in a news release. “Communicating with other counties that have already had cases of COVID-19 has provided valuable information and great resources for us as we move forward to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Crow Wing County. I want to remind people to please stay home, use e-visit and phone triage being offered by our healthcare facilities and continue to practice good hand washing.”
The Crow Wing County Public Health team is working closely Minnesota health officials from the Minnesota Department of Health to evaluate this individual’s step and with whom they might have come in contact in recent days. People identified will be asked to quarantine themselves for 14 days from their exposure date and will be monitored for fever and respiratory symptoms.
ADVERTISEMENT
In a majority of cases, COVID-19 causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever, cough and shortness of breath. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. Health officials recommend individuals and families make a plan in case someone gets sick. They also suggest following the same steps for avoiding the flu:
Stay home and away from others if you are sick.
Cover your coughs and sneezes with your elbow or a tissue.
Wash your hands frequently for 20 seconds with soap and water.
Avoid touching your face.
The Minnesota Department of Health has set up COVID-19 Hotlines available every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
- School and childcare questions: 651-297-1304 or 1-800-657-3504.
- Health questions: 651-201-3920 or 1-800-657-3903.
Visit www.cdc.gov and www.health.state.mn.us for more information about COVID-19.
ADVERTISEMENT
As a public service, we’ve opened this article to everyone regardless of subscription status. If this coverage is important to you, please consider supporting local journalism by clicking on the subscribe button in the upper righthand corner of the homepage.
