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"The vast majority are the unvaccinated," he said.

According to the county's dashboard, 53.3 percent of local residents are now fully vaccinated — including 60.9 percent of the eligible population age 12 and older — with another 6.85 percent having received one dose. While the average daily case rates among fully vaccinated residents have dropped sharply since the county reimplemented a mandatory masking order Aug. 7 — falling from 28 cases per 100,000 residents to 12 — rates among unvaccinated residents remain critically high at 84 per 100,000 residents.


And since the first confirmed breakthrough case in February, one fully vaccinated resident has died of COVID 19 while 45 unvaccinated residents have died from the virus. The same time span has seen 31 fully vaccinated residents hospitalized with COVID-19 compared to 197 unvaccinated residents.


Last month, the county also reported that due to the record-high case volume, it will be making some changes to its dashboard and data collection practices moving forward. Specifically, the county will drop the "cases cleared" section of its dashboard because it's become too time consuming to track all patients through their illnesses, while also discontinuing updates to its "transmission type" section because "data show the virus is widespread in our communities to the extent that it is frequently impossible" to determine how someone was infected.


The recent spike in cases and a corresponding threat to local hospital capacity prompted Health Officer Ian Hoffman to announce a new countywide masking mandate that went into effect Aug. 7.

National, state and local health officials advise that vaccination remains an incredibly safe and effective protection against severe illness, hospitalization and death from COIVD-19, and the county has a host of no-cost clinics scheduled over the next week. (See the full schedule below.)

The case surge is also impacting local testing capacity, public health reports, with the county's OptumServe site and local pharmacies struggling to meet demand. The county announced today that it is expanding testing capacity locally and will open a new Eureka location to offer no-cost testing "most weekdays." Additionally, OptumServe, which provides no-cost testing seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Wharfinger Building in Eureka, also holds testing clinics fonce a week in McKinleyville, Fortuna, Hoopa and Arcata. Due to high demand, appointments are encouraged and can be made here.

According to a data tracker run by the nonprofit news organization CalMatters, Humboldt's COVID-19 hospitalization rate is 29.3 patients per 100,000 residents.

Del Norte County, meanwhile, once had the worst hospitalization rate in California and still remains among the counties with the highest rates in the state, with 20 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including six under intensive care, out of a population of around 29,000, which is equivalent to 71.9 hospitalized COVID-19 patients per 100,000 residents.


Public Health is urging residents who have yet to do so to get their COVID-19 vaccines, as it is the only protection against severe illness and death from the virus. This week's Public Health vaccine clinics include Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson doses. The full schedule includes:

Samoa – Friday, Sept. 3, from 3:30 to 6 p.m.
Humboldt Bay Social Club (900 New Navy Base Road) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Eureka – Saturday, Sept. 4, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wharfinger Building (1 Marina Way) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Arcata – Thursday, Sept. 9, from noon to 2 p.m.
Arcata Transit Center (925 E St.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Trinidad – Thursday, Sept. 9, from 4 to 7 p.m.
Trinidad Town Hall (409 Trinity St.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Garberville – Friday, Sept. 10, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Garberville Farmers’ Market (766 Locust St.) Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

To make an appointment in advance or view additional vaccination opportunities and to request help with transportation, visit www.vaccines.gov or www.myturn.ca.gov.

As of today, Humboldt County had confirmed 7,337 cases, with 344 hospitalizations and 75 confirmed COVID-19 related deaths.

The county’s test positivity rate has gone from 3.6 percent in November, to 7.3 percent in December and 9.9 percent in January, before dropping to 6.5 percent in February. In March, it dropped to 4.5 percent before inching back up to 5.9 percent in April. In May, it jumped to 8.3 percent but fell back to 5.9 percent in June. In July, it rose to 10.1 percent before jumping to 15.9 percent in August. Through the first three days of September, it sits at 18 percent.

Nationwide, more than 39.4 million cases have been confirmed with 641,725 deaths, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Of those, 4.2 million cases and 65,585 related deaths have been confirmed in California, according to the Department of Public Health.

Basics of COVID-19

The California Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control, state that symptoms of novel coronavirus include cough and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, or at least two of the following: fever, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat or a new loss of taste or smell.

Emergency warning signs needing immediate medical attention include difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, new confusion or inability to awaken, and bluish lips or face.

In an emergency situation:

Call ahead to the emergency room or inform the 911 operator of the possibility of a COVID-19 infection and, if possible, put on a face mask.

Symptoms or possible exposure:

In the case of a possible exposure with symptoms — fever and cough or shortness of breath — contact your doctor’s office or the county Department of Health and Human Services, which has a hotline that can be reached during business hours at [email protected] or at (707) 441-5000. Residents seeking medical advice or questions about testing are asked to contact Public Health at [email protected] or at (707) 445-6200.

St. Joseph Health has also set up a virtual assessment tool as an aid to assessing risk factors for contracting the illness, which can be found here.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has started a rumor-control webpage that can be found here. For the Journal's latest COVID stories, updates and information resources, click here.

Read the county's Joint Information Center release below:

Sept. 3, 2021 - 29 Cases, 3 Hospitalizations Reported Today
Twenty-nine new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Humboldt County today. The total number of residents who have tested positive for the virus now stands at 7,337.

Three new hospitalizations also were reported today, including two people in their 50s and one child under the age of 10 who is not yet old enough for vaccination.

Humboldt County Public Health Director Sofia Pereira said it is vitally important that local residents follow safety measures and get vaccinated to protect those who can’t. “Keeping our kids safe takes every single one of us,” she said. “Wear a mask, avoid gatherings and get vaccinated now. These tools give us the best chance to keep kids healthy and learning in school.”

Given the county’s extremely high case rate of 39.9 per 100,000 residents, Pereira emphasized the need to avoid or cancel gatherings, especially this Labor Day weekend when friends and family often come together to celebrate. For those who choose to host or attend a gathering or event, the COVID FAQs page (humboldtgov.org/COVIDFAQs) includes information on best practices to reduce transmission of the virus in group settings.

The graphs below — which depict average weekly case rates, hospitalization and death rates in unvaccinated and fully vaccinated local residents — show that severe outcomes from COVID-19 are considerably higher among unvaccinated individuals.

Since the first confirmed breakthrough case in February, one fully vaccinated Humboldt County resident has died from COVID-19. During that same period, 45 unvaccinated residents have died from the virus. In that time, 31 fully vaccinated residents have been hospitalized compared to 197 unvaccinated residents.

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As the graph above illustrates, the county’s hospitalization rate for vaccinated residents is 34 per 100,000 while the rate for unvaccinated residents is nearly four times higher at 119 per 100,000.

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The local case rate for unvaccinated people continues to climb, reaching 84 residents per 100,000 while the case rate for fully vaccinated individuals has declined for a third consecutive week to about 12 per 100,000 residents. View a more detailed depiction of the hospitalization and death rates graph and the case rate graph.

COVID-19 vaccines are available at Public Health clinics located around the county. Walk-ins are welcome, or appointments can be made in advance at MyTurn.ca.gov. For instructions in English or Spanish about how to use My Turn, go to humboldtgov.org/VaccineInfo.

See the schedule of upcoming Public Health clinics below:

Eureka – Saturday, Sept. 4, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wharfinger Building (1 Marina Way)
Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Fields Landing – Tuesday, Sept. 7, from noon to 4 p.m.
Fields Landing Boat Launch (End of Railroad Ave.)
Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Arcata – Thursday, Sept. 9, from noon to 2 p.m.
Arcata Transit Center (925 E St.)
Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Trinidad – Thursday, Sept. 9, from 4 to 7 p.m.
Trinidad Town Hall (409 Trinity St.)
Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

Garberville – Friday, Sept. 10, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Garberville Farmers’ Market (766 Locust St.)
Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson

To check availability of a particular vaccine at local pharmacies, visit vaccines.gov, or text a ZIP code to 438829 to locate a pharmacy offering vaccines nearby. Most pharmacies allow walk-ins.

Pfizer is authorized for those 12 and older, and Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are authorized for people age 18 and older. Minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Full protection from vaccination is achieved two weeks after receiving the second dose of a two-dose series or two weeks after receiving a single-dose vaccine.

The Humboldt County COVID-19 Joint Information Center will be closed Monday, Sept. 6, in observance of Labor Day. OptumServe’s COVID-19 testing sites in Eureka and McKinleyville will also be closed Monday.

All datasets, including weekly and monthly, on the Humboldt County Data Dashboard have been updated. View the Data Dashboard online at humboldtgov.org/dashboard, or go to humboldtgov.org/DashboardArchives to download data from a previous time.

For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or by contacting [email protected] or calling 707-441-5000.

Sign up for COVID-19 vaccination: MyTurn.ca.gov
Check for vaccine availability at a local pharmacy: Vaccines.gov
Local COVID-19 vaccine information: humboldtgov.org/VaccineInfo
Humboldt County COVID-19 Data Dashboard: humboldtgov.org/Dashboard
Follow us on Facebook: @HumCoCOVID19
Instagram: @HumCoCOVID19
Twitter: @HumCoCOVID19
Humboldt Health Alert: humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert
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