Data updated Wednesday from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment shows a coronavirus outbreak has been determined at the University of Colorado Boulder as the county surpassed 4,000 positive cases.
According to the state data, 12 staff members have tested positive for the virus and 1,198 individuals characterized as “attendees” have tested positive. Additionally, 104 attendees are deemed probable, meaning the virus was not lab confirmed. The outbreak was determined Wednesday.
The outbreak at CU Boulder is the largest the state has seen so far, with more than double the cases seen at second-largest outbreak at the Sterling Correctional Facility, where 622 people have been infected and three have died.
Attendees represent students, regardless of whether they live on or off campus and staff encompasses all individuals employed by the university who are not also students, according to a Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment spokesperson who declined to give their name.
Wednesday marks the first day of CU Boulder beginning fully remote learning for at least 14 days. The university’s dashboard, updated Wednesday morning, shows 53 tests returned positive Tuesday, bringing the total to 912 on-campus tests returning positive since Aug. 24.
The university said Monday it was switching to remote learning in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The county health department also asked students living in Boulder to voluntarily quarantine through 11:59 p.m. Sept. 29, and CU Boulder officials are disciplining students caught gathering in large groups
Last week a drive-up coronavirus testing center and a walk-up testing center opened in the county, available to anyone. As part of the testing process, individuals are asked if they are affiliated with the university, Boulder County Public Health previously stated.
Prior to the state outbreak data, it was unclear how many positive tests at CU Boulder were connected to students versus staff or faculty.
One week ago, state data listed outbreaks at CU Boulder sororities Alpha Phi, Delta Gamma, Gamma Phi Beta and Pi Beta Phi and an outbreak at fraternity Phi Kappa Psi. In Wednesday’s data, the six outbreaks were no longer listed as either active or resolved.
The spokesperson stated this is because those outbreaks now are included in the university’s community outbreak.
“After consulting with Boulder County Public Health, which is leading the disease investigation at the local level, (Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment) and Boulder County Public Health are evolving the classification of the many outbreaks at CU Boulder to be a single outbreak,” the spokesperson wrote in an email. “At this time, there is widespread disease transmission among the CU (Boulder) community.”
When asked how many of the university’s positive tests are of Boulder County residents, the spokesperson said the cases are not being tracked by home address.
“Because many of the individuals associated with this outbreak live in a variety of counties and have home addresses in many counties, states and countries, the cases are not being tracked by home address but by the association with spending time on campus,” the email read.
State data also shows an active outbreak at Valley Nissan in Longmont. The outbreak was determined Sept. 8, and nine staff members have tested positive and four are considered probable.
General Manager Troy Mewis said the dealership was closed Sept. 6 and 7 for a deep cleaning. He said staff members have not tested positive or shown symptoms since Sept. 11.
“We are confident that we have eliminated Covid-19 from our store … We are proud and grateful to say that all employees have fully recovered and returned to work following the isolation period,” Mewis wrote in an email.
Mewis said the dealership worked closely with Boulder County Public Health as soon as the first positive test returned “to ensure the safety of all of our employees as well as the public.”
The outbreak at Mesa Vista is still active, with two residents testing positive and six staff members testing positive.
Boulder County tallied 86 coronavirus cases Wednesday, bringing the county total to 4,049. Of those, 204 have been hospitalized and 1,020 have recovered. There are 194 disease investigations in progress and the death toll remains at 79.
Two weeks ago, the county had a total of 2,574 cases. The Sept. 9 age breakdown showed 368 cases in the 10-19 age group and 845 in the 20-29 age group. On Wednesday, the county listed 1,209 cases in the 10-19 age range and 1,333 in the 20-29 age range.
CU Boulder added public health order enforcement totals to its coronavirus dashboard Wednesday, which on Wednesday showed 592 referrals since Aug. 24.
Statewide, there have been 66,669 positive or probable cases. There have been 2,030 deaths among the cases, and of those, there have been 1,926 deaths because of the coronavirus. There have been 7,444 people hospitalized. Of Colorado’s roughly 5.7 million population, 848,906 people have been tested for the virus.
Boulder County cases by age:
- 0-9: 66
- 10-19: 1,209
- 20-29: 1,333
- 30-39: 336
- 40-49: 332
- 50-59: 315
- 60-69: 187
- 70-79: 143
- 80+: 111
Some data may be missing due to ongoing disease investigations and reporting delays, the health department states.
