The county announced 22 new COVID-19 cases, likely an artificially low number amid a system crash at the state Department of Health, officials say.
By Matt Skoufalos | May 12, 2020
NJDOH COVID-19 Dashboard – 5-12-20. Credit: NJDOH.
Another 22 Camden County residents have been sickened by novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the Camden County government reported Monday, bringing the local caseload to 4,294 patients.
That number is likely artificially low, the county reported, due to a system outage at the New Jersey Department of Health reporting system.
Throughout New Jersey, 140,743 people have been sickened by COVID-19 and 9,508 have perished from related causes.
Twelve of them were Camden County residents, as the local death toll climbed to 230 fatalities Tuesday.
The deceased are:
- a Berlin man in his 70s
- a Camden City man in his 60s
- six Cherry Hill Township women, three in their 80s, two in their 70s, and one in her 90s; and two men in their 70s
- a Gloucester City man in his 20s
- a Somerdale woman in her 80s
Of 4,294 local COVID-19 cases, 1,071 have originated in a Camden County long-term care (LTC) facility, or 25 percent.
LTCs are believed to be associated with 178 of 230 total local deaths, or 77 percent. About half of the 56 LTCs in Camden County (27) have experienced at least one case of COVID-19.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims, nine of whom were residents of long-term care facilities,” Camden County Freeholder-Director Lou Cappelli said in a statement.
“Still, we know that our cases have been consistent or down for the better part of two weeks, and this is entirely due to the hard work of Camden County’s residents,” Cappelli said.
“As we begin to enter the next phase of this new reality, please continue to observe social distancing, avoid unnecessary trips, and wash your hands often.”
The newest local cases are:
- a Berlin Township man in his 50s
- two Camden City men, one each in his 50s and 70s; and a woman in her 80s
- five Cherry Hill Township women, four in their 80s and one in her 60s; and a man in his 70s
- a Gloucester City woman in her 30s
- three Gloucester Township women, one each in her 20s, 30s, and 80s; and a man in his 50s
- a Pine Hill man in his 60s
- four Voorhees Township men, three in their 80s, and one in his 30s; and two women in their 80s
The Camden County and New Jersey Health Departments are working to facilitate trace investigations into all cases.
