Alexandria now has 1,974 cases of COVID-19, an increase of 14 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
No new coronavirus-related deaths have been reported and the number of fatalities remains at 44.
Few Masks in a Crowded Old Town
Sections of Old Town were packed on Saturday, as hundreds of residents and visitors gathered on lower King Street. With the city in the first phase of reopening its economy, many wore no face masks outdoors and enjoyed themselves with open containers of alcohol.
“We will continue reopening while the virus is out there,” Mayor Justin Wilson told ALXnow. “We will probably be in a situation where we continue easing restrictions and the virus is prevalent for a year or so.”
The city has temporarily closed the 100 and 200 blocks of King Street to vehicular traffic, “to allow more room for pedestrians to stay at least 6 feet apart while walking,” the city said in a press release.
Wilson said that anyone who sees crowds of 10 or more people gathering can call the Alexandria Police Department at 703-746-4444.
Old Town resident Boyd Walker said that reopening in Old Town is necessary, although risky while the governor’s stay at home order is in effect until June 10.
“Many businesses are on the brink of failing, so if we don’t re-open safely many might go bust if there is a lockdown again,” Walker said. “But if there are not reminders to wear a mask and social distance with signage or health department employees, we may have a resurgence of cases, and be in a lock down again, and won’t that be a pickle.”
Per the governor’s guidelines for phase 1, outdoor tables need to be six feet apart. This was not done in Old Town.
“If tables are not movable, seat parties at least six feet apart,” the guidelines read. “Spacing must also allow for physical distancing from areas outside of the facility’s control (i.e. provide physical distancing from persons on public sidewalks).”
May Worst Month for COVID-19 in Alexandria
There have been more than 20 deaths and 1,000 new reported cases of COVID-19 in May alone, making it the worst month for the coronavirus so far.
A large percentage of deaths have occurred at long-term care facilities, and there has been one death of a person in their 20s. There are 19 reported deaths of residents in their 80s and 13 deaths of residents in their 70s.
As more testing is done and the city starts to reopen, Health Director Dr. Stephen Haering expects the number of cases to increase.
Hispanic residents make up 17% of the population and, as of yesterday, were leading with the highest number of cases in the city with six deaths, 946 cases and 83 total hospitalizations.
There have been 9,356 PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests administered in Alexandria so far, and the city’s seven-day positivity rate shows a 12% infection rate of those tested. There have also been 1,296 antibody tests in Alexandria. Across Virginia, there have been 296,321 PCR tests administered with a seven-day positivity rate of 13.4% (and 36,009 antibody tests).
Statewide, there have been 1,375 reported deaths (five since yesterday), and 1,274 of those deaths are confirmed to have been COVID-19-related, according to VDH. There are now 44,607 cases (42,499 confirmed, 2,108 probable) and 4,643 hospitalizations (including 32 probable cases).
COVID-19 Age and Sex Breakdown
There are 1,002 females with the virus (with 23 deaths and 81 hospitalizations) and 947 males (with 21 deaths and 106 hospitalizations) who tested positive for COVID-19 in the city. The sex of 11 cases was not reported.
- 80+ — 19 deaths, 76 cases, 24 hospitalizations
- 70-79 — 13 deaths, 90 cases, 33 hospitalizations
- 60-69 — Two deaths, 171 cases, 32 hospitalizations
- 50-59 — Nine deaths, 257 cases, 38 hospitalizations
- 40-49 — Zero deaths, 377 cases, 32 hospitalizations
- 30-39 — Zero deaths, 458 cases, 23 hospitalizations
- 20-29 — One death, 291 cases, five hospitalizations
- 10-19 — Zero deaths, 133 cases, two hospitalizations
- 0-9 — Zero deaths, 111 cases, one hospitalizations
- Missing — 10 cases not listed by age
There have been 132 cases associated with 12 outbreaks in the city, and 121 of those cases have been health care workers. Nine of the outbreaks occurred at long-term care facilities, and 15 deaths have occurred at such facilities, although that number has not been updated since the city’s release on May 2. The other outbreaks occurred at “congregate” settings and an educational setting.
Cases By ZIP Code
The areas of the city with the leading number of cases are the 22304 and 22305 ZIP codes, which include the West End and Arlandria, Potomac Yard and Potomac West neighborhoods.
Some of the areas share jurisdictions between Alexandria and Arlington and Fairfax Counties:
- 22301 — 65 cases, 603 people tested (Estimated population 15,171) One new case, 10 new cases
- 22302 — 197 cases, 1,217 people tested (Estimated population 20,238) One new case, 11 new tests
- 22304 — 577 cases, 2,928 people tested (Estimated population 54,003) Two new cases, 26 new tests 577
- 22305 — 548 cases, 1,736 people tested (Estimated population 16,095) Two new cases, 14 new tests
- 22311 — 386 cases, 1,463 people tested (Estimated population 16,898) Four new cases, 16 new tests
- 22312 — 454 cases, 1,703 people tested (Estimated population 6,901) 12 new cases, 26 new tests
- 22314 — 166 cases, 1,408 people tested (Estimated population 47,826) One less case, 12 new tests
The City acknowledged that VDH and the Alexandria Health Department have “significant gaps in non-reporting of racial and ethnic demographics in this data.”
- Hispanic or Latino — Six Deaths, 946 cases, 83 hospitalizations
- White, non-Hispanic residents — 27 deaths, 712 cases, 72 hospitalizations
- Black/African American residents — 11 deaths, 277 cases, 53 hospitalizations
- Not Hispanic or Latino — 35 deaths, 599 cases, 103 hospitalizations
- Not reported — Five deaths, 571 cases, 16 hospitalizations
- Other — One death, 414 cases, 49 hospitalizations
The full timeline of the spread so far:
- March 11 — First positive case reported
- March 15 — Second positive case reported
- March 17 — Fourth positive case reported
- March 24 — The number of cases jumps to 13
- March 25 — The number of cases increases to 14
- March 26 — The number of cases increases to 20
- March 27 — The number of cases increases to 24
- March 28 — The number of cases increases to 28
- March 29 — The number of cases increases to 32
- March 31 — The number of cases increases to 44
- April 1 — The number of cases increases to 55
- April 2 — The number of cases increases to 67
- April 3 — The number of cases increases to 77
- April 4 — The number of cases increases to 93
- April 5 — The number of cases increases to 104
- April 6 — The number of cases increases to 130 (First fatality reported)
- April 7 — The number of cases increases to 141
- April 8 — The number of cases increases to 149
- April 9 — The number of cases increases to 170
- April 10 — The number of cases increases to 181
- April 11 — The number of cases increases to 200
- April 12 — The number of cases increases to 225
- April 13 — The number of cases increases to 241 (Second fatality reported)
- April 14 — The number of cases increases to 248 (Third and fourth fatalities reported)
- April 15 — The number of cases increases to 273 (Fifth and sixth fatalities reported)
- April 16 — The number of cases increases to 303 (Seventh fatality reported)
- April 17 — The number of cases increases to 321
- April 18 — The number of cases increases to 354
- April 19 — The number of cases increases to 383 (Eighth fatality reported)
- April 20 — The number of cases increases to 421 (Ninth and tenth fatalities reported)
- April 21 — The number of cases increases to 462 (Fatalities now at 11)
- April 22 — The number of cases increases to 474 (Fatalities now at 13)
- April 23 — The number of cases increases to 512 (Fatalities now at 14)
- April 24 — The number of cases increases to 547 (Fatalities now at 15)
- April 25 — The number of cases increases to 575 (Fatalities now at 18)
- April 26 — The number of cases increases to 591 (Fatalities now at 19)
- April 27 — The number of cases increases to 627
- April 28 — The number of cases increases to 653 (Fatalities now at 20)
- April 29 — The number of cases increases to 700 (Fatalities now at 21)
- April 30 — The number of cases increases to 754
- May 1 — The number of cases increases to 802 (Fatalities now at 24)
- May 2 — The number of cases increases to 848 (Fatalities now at 26)
- May 3 — The number of cases increases to 899
- May 4 — The number of cases increases to 940
- May 5 — The number of cases increases to 983
- May 6 — New cases and fatalities not reported by VDH
- May 7 — The number of cases increases to 1,060 (Fatalities now at 29)
- May 8 — The number of cases increases to 1,110
- May 9 — The number of cases increases to 1,142 (Fatalities now at 30)
- May 10 — The number of cases increases to 1,193
- May 11 — The number of cases increases to 1,224
- May 12 — The number of cases increases to 1,240
- May 13 — The number of cases increases to 1,305 (Fatalities now at 31)
- May 14 — The number of cases increases to 1,349 (Fatalities now at 32)
- May 15 — The number of cases increases to 1,396
- May 16 — The number of cases increases to 1460 (Fatalities now at 34)
- May 17 — The number of cases increases to 1,476
- May 18 — The number of cases increases to 1,510
- May 19 — The number of cases increases to 1,544
- May 20 — The number of cases increases to 1,577
- May 21 — The number of cases increases to 1,627 (Fatalities now at 37)
- May 22 — The number of cases increases to 1,657
- May 23 — The number of cases increases to 1,703 (Fatalities now at 38)
- May 24 — The number of cases increases to 1733
- May 25 — The number of cases increases to 1,754
- May 26 — The number of cases increases to 1,785 (Fatalities now at 41)
- May 27 — The number of cases increases to 1,824 (Fatalities now at 42)
- May 28 — The number of cases increases to 1,887 (Fatalities now at 44)
- May 29 — The number of cases increases to 1,941
- May 30 — The number of cases increases to 1,960
- May 31 — The number of cases increases to 1,974
Staff photos by James Cullum
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