Actions

SLO County adds 72 new COVID-19 cases, half are in San Luis Obispo

Coronavirus-Background-1280x720-1.jpg
Posted at 1:45 PM, Nov 06, 2020
and last updated 2020-11-06 16:45:35-05

San Luis Obispo County added 72 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the county's total to 4,568 confirmed cases as of November 6.

It's the second day in a row the case count has been in the 70s.

The San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department has attributed the spike in cases this week to "a growing fatigue fueled by the months-long pandemic," and said that 73% of the cases reported Thursday were people between the ages of 18 and 29-years-old.

Health officials said many of the currently active cases are among Cal Poly students living off campus who are gathering without following social distancing and other safety guidelines.

On Friday, San Luis Obispo had the highest number of new cases with 36. On-campus Cal Poly students made up the second-highest daily total with 19 cases.

Cal Poly is also reporting that 438 of its on-campus students are currently under a "quarantine in place order," and Cal Poly President Jeffrey Armstrong warned students in a letter sent to the campus community Thursday night that violations of isolation and quarantine orders could result in misdemeanor criminal charges and student conduct violations.

Cal Poly said it is increasing its coronavirus testing efforts and is specifically administering more than 400 tests to members of two sororities that "were engaging in activities that have greater risk of viral spread."

According to the Public Health Department, eight people in the county are currently hospitalized including three patients who are in the ICU. Another 306 are recovering at home and health officials say 4,221 people have recovered.

San Luis Obispo County has had 33 deaths attributed to COVID-19.

Breakdown of cases by location:

  • Paso Robles - 1,138
  • San Luis Obispo - 946
  • Atascadero - 430
  • Nipomo - 370
  • California Men's Colony (inmates) - 294
  • Arroyo Grande - 244
  • Grover Beach - 174
  • San Miguel - 171
  • Templeton - 153
  • Oceano - 143
  • Cal Poly (on-campus) - 88
  • Morro Bay - 70
  • Pismo Beach - 69
  • Los Osos - 66
  • Shandon - 58
  • Cambria - 36
  • Santa Margarita - 35
  • Creston - 27
  • Cayucos - 19
  • Avila Beach - 10
  • San Simeon - 6

The location of 17 additional cases is under investigation, and another four are listed as "other," which includes communities with fewer than five cases. The Public Health Department is not identifying those locations.

Community COVID-19 testing sites are currently open to the public in Arroyo Grande, San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, and Morro Bay.

Appointments are required at all locations. Click here to schedule an appointment.

For more information on the county's COVID-19 response, visit readyslo.org.