Positive COVID-19 cases in Carlton County increased more slowly over the past week, rising from 210 on Sept. 9, to 219 total cases on Wednesday, Sept. 16 with still just one death from the virus reported since March.

There has been one positive case each reported at the Esko secondary school and Churchill Elementary school in Cloquet. School officials ask that parents keep children at home if they are showing symptoms or may have been exposed to someone with Covid, and alert the school. And school leaders ask that community members wear masks and observe social distancing to help keep transmission rates low enough to keep children in school.

Anyone who has symptoms of COVID-19 or who has been exposed to someone they think may have the disease is encouraged to seek testing.

Symptoms can include fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills, headache, muscle pain, sore throat, fatigue, congestion, or loss of taste or smell. Other less common symptoms include gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. These symptoms may appear 2-14 days after you are exposed to the virus that causes COVID-19.

Not everyone with COVID-19 has all of these symptoms, and some people may not have any symptoms. Talk to your health care provider if you have questions or concerns about symptoms.

Local testing sites include CMH Raiter Clinic, Min No Aya Win Human Services Center, MedExpress Urgent Care in Cloquet, Gateway Family Clinic in Moose Lake and Cromwell Medical Clinic.

People are asked to wear masks in public indoor spaces and maintain social distancing from others, wash hands frequently and/or use hand sanitizer. Other tips include putting the toilet seat down when flushing to help avoid spreading coronavirus in the air and the surrounding surfaces. Thin fabric neck gaiters are not recommended for use as masks because they can aerosolize droplets coming through the fabric so they actually linger in the air longer.

Augustana Mercy Care Center in Moose Lake and Cloquet’s Evergreen Knoll are still on the list for Carlton County senior facilities that have had or have Covid-19 exposure. Exposure is defined as a person diagnosed with Covid who either visited, worked, or lived at a congregate care facility while they were contagious. It doesn’t necessarily mean that any residents were infected with the coronavirus.