Full Notification

As of 5:30pm, the County had not yet posted its daily COVID-19 press release, but based on County DOH’s data, it appears that there were 40 new positive cases yesterday and that the County’s COVID-19 pandemic total is now at 62,348 positive cases.  The County’s seven-day average of new daily positive cases decreased from 41.5 to 40.4 cases.  There were three COVID-19 hospitalizations overnight and the number of hospitalized County residents decreased by two to now 22 patients.  The County reported two deaths overnight which raised the County’s pandemic death toll to 533. 
 
State DOH reported that the County’s rate for one vaccine dose as of yesterday was 81.2% of the County’s total population and 89.7% of the adult population, and the County’s rate for full-vaccination was 73.8% for the total population.  The State’s rate for one dose was 89.2% for the total population and 95.0% of adults, and the State’s rate for full-vaccination was 75.7% for the total population.
 
The State’s COVID-19 website reported that yesterday’s results for 132,590 tests Statewide were 1,795 or 1.4% positive, with the seven-day average remaining at 1.5%.  The Capital Region had 4,006 tests of which 107 or 2.7% were positive, with the seven-day average decreasing to 2.5%.  The County had 1,184 tests of which 37 or 3.1% were positive, with the seven-day average increasing to 2.6%.

Governor Hochul announced today that the State’s positive rate for tests was 1.35%, and that the daily rate has been below 2% for 13 consecutive days.   Other COVID-19 data included new hospitalizations (1,507, -13), new admissions (153), ICU patients (234, -17), intubations (133, -5), and deaths (21). 

A reminder that tomorrow evening at 7pm, the Albany Pine Bush Preserve is hosting a virtual showing of “Uninvited: The Spread of Invasive Species,” a 55-minute documentary about invasive species, how they threaten the State’s environment and economy, and ways to combat these threats.  Here’s the link to sign-up for this free seminar.  DEC also has an informative website on identifying and safely removing aquatic and terrestrial invasive species.

For a welcome distraction from ongoing stressful events, please take a moment to check out the exciting news of yesterday’s discovery of the Endurance, the historic wooden ship used by explorer Ernest Shackleton that was crushed by ice packs, sank, and was last seen in 1915, off the coast of Antarctica.  After months of searching, an autonomous underwater vehicle discovered the Endurance upright, nearly intact, with toppled masts, and resting on the sea bottom nearly two miles under ice-packed waters and about four miles distant from its last recorded siting.  The photos include images of the ship’s name on the stern, the ship’s wheel, and rear deck.  The above link also details the history of Shackleton’s ill-fated goal of being the first person to cross Antarctica.
 
Town Highway plows have been out treating Town roads, and likely will be plowing snow into this evening.  The same conditions might happen this weekend.  Please be careful while driving and remember that overnight parking is not allowed on Town streets to allow the safe and unobstructed clearing of roads by Highway crews.

Thank you for staying safe and calm.
 
Peter G. Barber
Town Supervisor