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85 COVID-19 cases linked to Alco Harvesting outbreak in Santa Maria

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Posted at 8:19 AM, Jul 29, 2020
and last updated 2020-07-29 11:19:32-04

There are now 85 confirmed cases linked to a COVID-19 outbreak at Alco Harvesting in Santa Maria.

The updated numbers were released Tuesday by the Santa Barbara County Health Department.

Health officials say they are unaware of any hospitalized patients, but isolation is going well.

Alco is reportedly being guided by an infectious disease consultant group that is also overseeing continued testing.

Earlier this month, a driver for Alco Harvesting who was living in congregate H2A housing reportedly died after contracting COVID-19.

Shortly after, health officials said they visited one of the housing locations to investigate a COVID-19 outbreak.

At the time, 14 farmworkers reportedly tested positive for COVID-19, including the man who died.

He was the first person in farmworker housing in Santa Maria to die, according to the health department.

Santa Maria has 2,677 of Santa Barbara County's 5,931 confirmed COVID-19 cases to date.