As businesses reopen, Clay County officials urge citizens to be cautious. | Pixabay
As businesses reopen, Clay County officials urge citizens to be cautious. | Pixabay
As businesses reopen in the state, the number of COVID-19 cases in Clay County and surrounding counties is increasing.
Spencer Mayor Kevin Robinson said the community's COVID-19 task force had prepared for the early June peak in cases. Robinson said he has been keeping an eye on neighboring counties' case count as well because of the commuter patterns. Though the case numbers are rising, hospitalizations in Clay and Dickinson counties are lower than projected.
The most recent proclamation from Gov. Kim Reynolds lifted capacity restrictions on restaurants, retail stores and fitness centers.
Clay County Board of Supervisors Chair Dan Skelton said Clay County residents have been able to keep the case count down because they have been following the guidelines put out. He said cases have quadrupled in the two weeks after Memorial Day when restrictions began to be lifted and encouraged residents to continue to wear face masks in public, maintain social distance, use good hygiene and disinfect surfaces.
The Clay County Fair, scheduled for Sept. 12-20, is still on the schedule.
Both Robinson and Skelton urged Clay County residents to keep trudging forward and working to prevent the spread.
“I know it’s tough,” Skelton said according to the Spencer Signal. “It’s summertime. We’re tired of being cooped up for three months. We want to get out and do things. We want to be more active. We want to go to retail spaces and do things – and you can do that. But we ask that you do it in a responsible manner, in which you have been doing it.”
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