A 31-year-old female working at a meat processing plant is the latest resident in Adair County identified as testing positive for COVID-19. Adair County has 30 confirmed cases of the virus since January 1, 2020, with 18 individuals in isolation, 12 recovered, and no deaths.
Jim LeBaron, the administrator of the Adair County Health Department, said residents are now seeing what’s referred to in public health as “community spread” of the COVID-19 virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines “community spread” as “…people have been infected with the virus in an area, including some who are not sure how or where they became infected.”
A week ago, LeBaron said Adair county had only one active case of COVID-19 and 12 recoveries. Within eight days, they’ve had 17 more confirmed cases. LeBaron said some people think these infections are only affecting people who work at places like Smithfield Foods in Milan or Kraft Heinz in Kirksville, but he stated that’s not accurate. Infected people are now spreading the virus to their friends, family, and the Kirksville community at large.
