Edhat Staff
Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital (file photo)
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department (PHD) is confirming four (4) additional cases of COVID-19 today. This makes 68 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Santa Barbara County. Below are more details about the four (4) cases announced Sunday, March 29:
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Case #65—in their 70s and resides in the South County Unincorporated Areas, which include communities of Montecito, Toro Canyon, Summerland and the City of Carpinteria
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Case #66—in their 60s and resides in the North County Unincorporated Areas which include New Cuyama, Sisquoc, Casmalia, Garey, and City of Guadalupe
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Case #67—in their 40s and in the North County Unincorporated Areas which include New Cuyama, Sisquoc, Casmalia, Garey, and City of Guadalupe
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Case #68—in their 20s and resides in the City of Santa Maria
Although PHD has released the cities and areas where confirmed COVID-19 cases have occurred, it is critical that residents in all areas of the county stay at home and practice social distancing when performing essential tasks outside their home.
Of the 68 cases, 45 are recovering at home, eight (8) persons are recovering in a hospital, six (6) of which are in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU), fourteen (14) have fully recovered, and one (1) is pending an update.
PHD is prioritizing thorough investigations for cases with exposures in healthcare and other congregate settings to identify persons who may have been exposed. Mandated social distancing measures are in place to slow the spread of the virus.
Update by Santa Barbara County Public Health Department
Coronavirus Cases Jumps to 64 Overnight
The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department (PHD) is confirming 17 additional cases of COVID-19 today. This makes 64 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Santa Barbara County at this time. Below are more details about the 17 new cases:
- Case #48—in their 20s and resides in the South County Unincorporated Area
- Case #49—in their 50s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #50—in their 40s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #51—in their 40s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #52—in their 70s and resides in Santa Barbara
- Case #53—in their 40s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #54—in their 60s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #55—in their 60s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #56—in their 20s and resides in the South County Unincorporated Area
- Case #57—in their 60s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #58—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
- Case #59—in their 70s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #60—in their 60s and resides in Santa Barbara
- Case #61—in their 40s and resides in Santa Maria
- Case #62—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
- Case #63—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
- Case #64—in their 20s and resides in Lompoc
Although PHD has released the cities and areas where confirmed COVID-19 cases have occurred, it is critical that residents in all areas of the county stay at home and practice social distancing when performing essential tasks outside their home.
Of the 64 cases, 47 are recovering at home, six (6) persons are recovering in a hospital, three (3) of which is in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and eleven (11) have fully recovered. PHD is prioritizing thorough investigations for cases with exposures in healthcare and other congregate settings to identify persons who may have been exposed. Mandated social distancing measures are in place to slow the spread of the virus.
By edhat staff
As of Friday afternoon, five people are hospitalized with two of them in the intensive care unit (ICU) as the total number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases increases to 47 in Santa Barbara County.
Public Health officials confirm a patient under 10-years-old is among the fifteen newly confirmed cases. Due to privacy restrictions, officials only stated the ages of the recent positive cases range from less than 10-years-old to 70’s.
From the total 47 positive cases, 31 are recovering at home, 5 are hospitalized with 2 in ICU, and 11 are fully recovered. Of the fifteen new cases, 2 are in Santa Maria, 1 in the unincorporated area of Gaviota/Goleta, 2 in Goleta, 9 in Santa Barbara, and 1 in the unincorporated area of Montecito/Summerland/Carpinteria.
Below are more details about the fifteen (15) cases announced Friday, March 27:
• Case #33—in their 40s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #34—in their 50s and resides in Santa Maria
• Case #35—between ages 10-19 and resides in Goleta
• Case #36—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #37—in their 70s and resides in the Unincorporated areas of the Goleta Valley and Gaviota
• Case #38—in their 40s and resides in Santa Maria
• Case #39—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #40—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #41—in their 30s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #42—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #43—in their 20s and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #44—in their 20s and resides in Goleta
• Case #45—is younger than 10 years old and resides in Santa Barbara
• Case #46—in their 50s and resides in the Unincorporated areas, including communities of Montecito, Summerland, and the City of Carpinteria
• Case #47—in their 50s and resides in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara County Public Health Department Director Van Do-Reynoso stated they expect to see these numbers increase in the days to come and urged residents to continue to stay home as much as possible and limit outings to essential tasks only.
“We are experiencing a significant uptick in new confirmed cases in the county. This is an expected development given the high infection rate. Fortunately, there are no fatalities,” said Dr. Henning Ansorg, Santa Barbara County Public Health Officer.
Dr. Ansorg continued to state the turnaround time for COVID-19 testing has improved significantly, sometimes less than 24 hours in high priority situations. He clarified a high priority case as someone who has the potential to spread the virus, such as a nurse who works with a vulnerable population.
In response to a potential surge of patients at local hospitals, Do-Reynoso stating they are currently in communication with community and hospital partners putting together rough estimates and will have a model to share early next week.
Cottage Health System CEO Ron Werft sent a letter to staff confirming 23 patients were awaiting COVID-19 test results. Of those patients, nine are in critical condition and four negative-pressure social isolation units are established to handle COVID-19 cases, reports Nick Welsh of The Independent.
“We have now moved to high-level surge planning and made the decision today to use every opportunity inside the walls of our hospital to convert space for patient care,” wrote Werft.
It is unclear how many of those patients, if any, were included in the 15 new cases announced today. During the press conference, officials stated they were unaware of Cottage Health’s numbers as the Public Health Department only reports confirmed cases.
As of Friday evening, Ventura County reported 83 positive COVID-19 cases and 3 deaths. The three deaths were patients in their 70’s with pre-existing health conditions. Ventura County has tested 1,543 people to date.
San Luis Obispo County reports 59 cases with 0 deaths as of Friday morning.
The full press conference is available here.
[Editor’s Note: This article has been edited with specific demographics of the new cases in Santa Barbara and updated numbers from Ventura County. ]
Santa Barbara PHD is doing a poor job. First, they didn’t want to give out location info. They were unaware of the cottage cases? Did you ask about it and out them in your statistics across the whole county. Daily news conference is a joke. Now the pending cases are not there either. Incompetent people at PHD as far as I can see., play as it goes.
It seems as if people aren’t taking shelter in place seriously. So many people about and so many businesses remaining open. I understand the severe economic impact. But they should close for a few weeks. And owners and employees should be able to confidently look forward to some Federal and State economic aide.
Have you SEEN the replies from some people on here? Or looked at some of the live webcams that are out? Or Instagram? PLENTY of people, and YOUNG people out and about.
Get real. No “checking of privilege” needed. It is a problem. STAY IN YOUR GOSH DARN MOTHER TRUCKING HOMES!!!!!
My family is basically on lockdown in the house. We talked about it tonight again. I still go to work because we are an essential government supplier. I enter the building, I wash my hands immediately, then I go to my office. If I touch another object outside of my office I immediately wash my hands. Today I made isopropyl alcohol sanitizing stations for locations deeper in the building where it’s difficult to wash hands. I wash my hands before going to the car and driving home. I wash my hands again and change clothes. I just realized today my hands are super dry and cracking from all the washing. Keep your kids at home. Don’t let them play frisbee, BBall, or any activity that exchanges an object with someone else. I think we are a week away, maybe less, from an explosion of cases in this town.
It seems clear you have a limited understanding of what’s going on and are scared spitless. Quite understandable under the circumstances. But please don’t panic. Knowing where in the county the infection is popping up isn’t going to help you regain control of your current situation. Given that there are barely any tests to be had assume everyone is an asymptomatic carrier. And unless one of these carriers coughs or sneezes on you (remember they are asymptomatic so no way of knowing if they are infected or not) and you are within 6 ft of them you’re NOT going to be contaminated. Just keep washing your hands after going out and don’t touch your face if you do. Knowing where in the county the sick people are doesn’t change your situation, or level of fear. Only you can do that. And until tests are available for EVERYONE (as Trump lied they would be) there is no way of knowing who’s a carrier and who isn’t.
I’m out and about only when I need to go to work (we’re critical infrastructure), buy food, or get exercise. It’s amazing how many people are buying cheap tickets to the Caribbean, Florida, Hawaii, etc. Many will just bring back the virus to their home towns.
I had to go to the grocery store and drove around a bit downtown to see what was happening as I was curious and haven’t left the house in a week. I was surprised to see how many people are still out and about, sometimes hanging out in groups of 4 – 5 talking, families eating ice cream sitting together around tables, etc etc. You can read other stories of people still having their kids play on playgrounds, the list goes on. A lot of people are not taking it seriously enough.
Doesn’t surprise me a gym that’s open right now would have people coming to work out. Narcissism is a common trait among gym rats.
The disconnect between what is actually going on on the ground and PH is deeply concerning. The shortage of tests, and moreover, the INSANE PROCESSING TIMES really beggar belief. This country and this state and our medical system are pathetic.
I hate narcissism
Thanks Alex
I called. They claimed to be closed which is odd because they answered the phone and it’s a 24 hour gym
I think people are taking it very seriously. I have been driving to work every day, doing errands (buying groceries, doing laundry–yes, some of us have to go to the laundrette, etc.), riding my bike in Santa Barbara and Goleta with my daughter, and going for walks on the beaches. State Street is deserted, the playgrounds are closed with caution tape, and people are observing social distancing rules. Occasionally, you will see married couples and families together, but if they’re living under one roof, sharing beds, etc., of course they’re going to be in closer contact. My observations differ completely from some of the hysterical comments on here, which seem to be based on what someone has “read about” or seen on Instagram.
Here’s where to report violations info@sbsheriff.org
It’s been 15 days since my sister-in-law and niece returned from Madrid. Miraculously they are symptom free after being quarantined behind a plastic wall in half of their house. I’m so glad they were able to get out of Spain which has become a death trap since then as ~5,100 people died in the past 15 days.
So monitoring businesses around town, like calling to see if a gym answers their phone, is your business?
It’s 64 cases now
Like last weekend, I went for a bike ride for exercise. On State Street, Rite Aid, many of the frozen dessert and smoothie places, and some restaurants doing takeout were open. Otherwise it was a ghost street again. Again there were relatively few people at the oceanfront (Shoreline Beach Cafe was open for takeout) and fewer at the Ledbetter BBQ pits than last weekend but some tight groups of people. Both Wilcox and Elings had fewer people as well – though the sheep are still flagrantly violating social distancing 🙂 Mission Park (aka Rose Garden) had a lot fewer people and not as much bunching . APS was closed at the Mission due to road work. So I walked my bike past the Mission dam/waterworks to get up to Mission Ridge to continue home. Overall not much traffic or people out with good signs of distancing.
No matter how many times that is, it’s not enough
How about a bit more information and transparency regarding the victims? What is their general travel history? Where did they contract the virus? Where have they been recently? How many associated people are under observation?
Of course the victims are just that…victims. But the public deserves to know the truth.
SB County PHD has completely let us down. Why aren’t reporters asking these pertinent questions? Is anybody competent anymore?
Glad your family made it home safe, but using words like “death trap” is not accurate and only helps to spread panic. Vigilance yes, panic no.
The victims deserve to recover in privacy and peace. The personal information of the victims shouldn’t be the source of your entertainment. What if you were one of them? Would you want some stranger prying about why you ended up in the hospital With this disease? Show some compassion, let them recover in privacy. How they got the virus simply does not matter.
This social distancing thing really shows what some people are made of. It’s all about me me me.
I wash my hands like Trump just touched them.
Is there a test to confirm if a person has already had Coronavirus, and consequently has immunity for up to 12 months? Rep Cassidy ftom Louisiana who is also a physician made remarks worth serious consideration. One is offering paid jobs to those with the immunity to assist medical professionals in various capacities. He also suggested tracking and profiling consenting proven survivors for at least 12 months to be better informed for next wave. PUblic Health has failed us. After Katrina, the messaging was loud and clear: “If you expect the government to save you, you’re a fool.” Personal awareness and preparedness is a personal responsibility.
Address me directly, LOOSECANNON. No need to be coy. We’ll see how the numbers are in a week or so, and then you’ll be eating your words. The bottom line is that people ARE out, doing things that aren’t “essential” And a lot of it has to do with the fact that young people (myself included) haven’t ever had an EXISTENTIAL threat to their way of life before (World Wars, Vietnam, etc). So they’re handling this siutation with typical American arrogance; That we can do what we want, when we want, how we want. Sorry, but viruses don’t discriminate, nor do they assign privilege. Whether you’re on Skid Row or the PM of the UK, you can catch this, and your chances of getting really sick or dying is appreciable. Pull your head outta your 4th point of contact, open your eyes to the reality of what’s happening, AND STAY IN YOUR HOUSE UNLESS FOR CRITICAL STUFF!!!
X01660, I am in favor of social distancing, good hygiene, and responsible behaviour. I am a Gen Xer, and feel sorry for Millennials because you’re collectively taking it on the chin. I see more gray-haired people nonchalantly walking around this town, oblivious of social distancing rules, than younger people. Some folk are just reacting to imagery of a bunch of twits in Fort Lauderdale frolicking on the beach. Thankfully, I do not see this kind of idiotic behaviour here. There are 4 Millennials living in the house next to me, and I know from interacting with them that they are responsible people. I am in favor of rational behaviour and social policies that make sense. We are told that it is acceptable, indeed even a positive thing, to exercise outdoors as long as we socially distance (exercise is good for mental health and physically boosts the immune system), yet the park service closes the entire Los Padres system, including the day use areas where picnic tables are 20 or 30 feet apart, while single-lane trails in the mountains, like Jesusita, Tunnel, Romero, etc., remain open, where it is impossible to maintain this distance. Why? It doesn’t make sense. Sometimes it seems that social policies are being enacted for purely punitive reasons. There is also a huge class divide. What sort of sacrifices are wealthy people making, hunkered down in their McMansions, with big backyards, their fridges and pantries chocker-block with food they’re hoarding? I live in a one-room studio, have a dorm-size fridge with a freezer compartment that holds a tray for 12 ice cubes, and I need to go out to do laundry because I don’t have a washer-dryer where I live. People like me, and many are much worse off, don’t need privileged people barking at them, nor do they deserve a punitive approach. KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON.
We can only hope PH officials will scatterplot map cases, not just towns. If one is to take action, we need not just “Santa Barbara” but where in Santa Barbara. Hopefully PH has recovered from its stupidity with Santa Maria drug-resistant TB, where it declined to notify the community because of fears that it would stigmatize ethnicities. If we have more concerns about “social justice” than health, then health officials please resign and become social advocates. The public needs clear, transparent information – and no, that does not mean ethnicities. We just want facts. If you recall back a month or so, that is how South Korea got a handle on this beast – citizens were informed of the geo hotspots.
Exactly Shasta
We should report businesses that are breaking the law
Just trying to protect our community
For instance I just heard Montecito Barbers is still open as is Santa Barbara Gym and Fitness
I don’t see how reporting law violators makes me a busybody
Kruppe. That’s really not your business unless you get sick
Actually Kruppe is right. As long as their name or other revealing info isn’t released, it’s ok
Everbody knows the basic tricks dealing with virus, hand washing, etc. There is no need for the to repeat 10000 times. That’s not what counts as their main job, How about coordinating with the cottage hospital, get accurate idea of spread, get testing quicker, … PHD Santa Barbara is doing a poor job. New leadership is needed before its too late. Act now. They are not pushing enough, trying harder enough to get testing faster and more efficient. The statistics is a joke and they know it is but don’t feel ashamed to toss it out there, because they think they are doing a job. Shame on them!
In Los Angeles, they shut off the water and power of businesses that violate the law
How about putting portable hand washing stations in front of grocery stores – and places people will still need to go for essentials?
Tracing contacts is only useful at the beginning of pandemics. Now we are at the quarantining and distancing stage to try and flatten the curve. Just assume everyone else has it, and you don’t want to get it. Act accordingly.