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Traces of COVID appear to decline in Delta County

ESCANABA — While there is certainly illness in Delta County, COVID-19 is likely not the cause.

According to the Sentinel Wastewater Epidemiology Evaluation Project, or SWEEP, which monitors the amount of detectable DNA from the virus responsible for COVID-19 in wastewater from select sewersheds across the state, the last sample from the Escanaba Wastewater Treatment Plant contained less viral DNA than all other samples collected at the site since the city began participating in the program in August 2021. That sample, dated Sept. 16, followed another sample on Sept. 11 that contained more viral DNA than 19% of all samples.

While it is possible the Sept. 16 sample was recorded in error, the city’s detectable DNA through SWEEP has been dropping since highs that followed the Upper Peninsula State Fair in August. The last time a single sample contained more viral DNA than 50% of all samples was Sept. 4.

SWEEP serves as a barometer of infection trends in the city, but there is no real way to translate the amount of detectable viral DNA into the number of people who are infected with COVID-19 for a number of reasons. Many people who contract the virus show no symptoms, and even among individuals who are known to be infected, viral loads can vary greatly.

At the beginning of the pandemic, when testing was done exclusively by medical professionals in health care settings or at mobile clinics, all known infections were reported to the state. As home testing became available, many of the testing programs sunsetted and data became less reliable. However, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has continued to report the number of cases identified in health care settings.

MDHHS’s numbers are slightly more current than SWEEP’s, reporting the number of reported cases found in each Michigan county for the prior week.

For the entirety of the Upper Peninsula, the number of cases reported in each county by MDHHS for the week of Sept. 28: Houghton, 17; Marquette, 16; Baraga, 12; Chippewa, 12; Iron, 5; Delta, 4; Gogebic, 4; Menominee, 3; Ontonagon, 3; Dickinson, 2; Luce, 2; Keweenaw, 1; Alger, 1; Mackinac, 1; and Schoolcraft, 0.

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