Bell County is back in the red zone designation for COVID-19 cases, just weeks after it appeared the pandemic was winding down.

According to the Bell County Health Department, Bell County reported 9 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, putting the counties total number of cases to 3,240 since the beginning of the pandemic. There were five people hospitalized in Bell County due to the virus, and at least 65 active individual cases across the county.  There have been 46 COVID-19 related deaths in Bell County.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services lists recommendations for counties in the red zone. These include increasing vaccination efforts, encouraging masking and physical distancing, maximizing usage of outdoor areas for gatherings, encouraging medically vulnerable people to avoid social activities with unvaccinated individuals and considering postponing large public events.

Via social media outlets, Governor Andy Beshear announced there were 1,593 new COVID-19 cases reported on Wednesday. There were two new deaths reported, putting the state’s total number of COVID-19 related deaths at000.  At least 2,286,288 Kentuckians have been administered one of the available COVID-19 vaccines. The state’s positivity rate was 8.29 percent on Wednesday. There were 571 people hospitalized due to the virus across Kentucky, with 185 individuals in ICU and 83 people on a ventilator as of Wednesday.

The Bell County Health Department recommends the following steps to help slow the spread of COVID 19:

•  Wash hands with soap and water before eating, after blowing your nose, coughing, sneezing, or after using the restroom;

•  Avoid contact with people who are sick;

•  Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth;

•  Wear a mask when in public and social distancing is difficult.