49 More Daily Cases. Concerns Over July 4th Gatherings Rise.

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Sonoma County health officials reported 49 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, with another 1119 tests conducted.

Officials say many of the new cases are being traced to gatherings that occurred over the Memorial Day weekend, and they are cautioning members of the public to avoid gathering with friends or extended family over the upcoming Independence Day weekend.

The new cases have also boosted the two week tally of cases per 100 thousand population, a key metric the state uses to evaluate success in containing the virus. That number has risen to 82 per 100 thousand and has been surging in past few weeks. In late May it stood at approximately 40 per 100 thousand.

The percentage of positive tests has also been inching upward. It now stands at 2.4 percent, up from around 2 percent a few weeks ago. However this is still far below the state level of around 5.5 percent.

County hospitalizations, which typically lag the case rate, continue at 12 confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients, with 8 confirmed or suspected patients in ICU beds. This follows a minor surge in confirmed cases at the end of June.

If Sonoma County reaches a two week case rate of 100 cases per 100 thousand population it will enter a state “watch list”, a group of counties where additional action to slow the spread of the virus may be necessary. County health officer Dr. Sundari Mase has called the rise in cases “concerning” and the numbers are clearing moving in the wrong direction, even though reopening was expected to bring additional infections.

For now county officials say they have no plans to close bars or impose a rollback of reopening before the holiday weekend arrives. But they urge the public to closely adhere to guidelines for the use of face coverings, social distancing, and rules against gathering in groups.