San Luis Obispo County Public Health officials say the county is experiencing a surge of COVID-19 cases.
Officials say more than 500 new cases of the virus have been reported in San Luis Obispo County in the past two days - 155 new cases on Wednesday and 353 new cases on Thursday.
SLO County Public Health typically reports COVID-19 case data twice a week - on Tuesdays and Fridays - but officials said Thursday that the data was posted a day early this week to keep the public informed ahead of the long holiday weekend.
Health officials say 17 additional cases of the Omicron variant have also been identified in San Luis Obispo County since Tuesday, although the actual number of Omicron cases is likely higher since only a small percentage of cases are sampled to determine their strain.
Public Health reports there are 1,130 known active COVID-19 cases in the county, with 1,104 people recovering at home and 26 patients in the hospital. Eight of those hospitalized patients are in the ICU.
No new COVID-19 related deaths have been reported since Tuesday.
Health officials say with the newly-added cases, the county's 14-day daily average has increased to 101 from 36 one month ago.
They say the spike in cases is likely due to the spread of the virus through holiday gatherings and travel.
Free coronavirus testing is available to the public in Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Grover Beach, and Morro Bay. Click here to register for an appointment.
Local urgent cares and many pharmacies also offer testing. Calling ahead for availability is encouraged.
To schedule an appointment for a COVID-19 vaccination, visit myturn.ca.gov. For information on mobile and pop-up vaccine clinics in San Luis Obispo County, click here.
To learn more about San Luis Obispo County's coronavirus response, visit readyslo.org.