Pickens County woman has died due to COVID-19

DALTON, Ga. –Pickens County continues to have seven cases of COVID-19, as of 7 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Georgia Department of Health. The health department updates figures at noon and 7p.m. each day.

Pickens County has one death from the virus. A 77-year-old woman with underlying health issues died last week.

Numbers in neighboring episodes:

Gordon: 18; 1 death-78-year-old male with underlying health issues

Whitfield: 14; 1 death-93-year-old male with underlying health issues

Murray: 5

Fannin: 5

 

PREVIOUSLY

A Pickens County woman has died from COVID-19, according to reports from emergency managament. Although no name could be released, John Nicholson, Director of Emergency Management for Pickens County, said the woman was 77-years-old.

“We didn’t transport her, the family did,” said Nicholson.

Another woman in her 60’s, from Cherokee County also died of the disease, which has claimed the lives of 56 Georgians, according to the Georgia Department of Health, which updates it’s numbers at noon and 7 p.m daily. Both women were in an undisclosed hospital.

The North Georgia Health District, which is comprised of Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield counties, has 58 cases, including the two who died. Cherokee County has 46 cases, Whitfield County has six cases, Pickens four, and Fannin two. Statewide, there are 1,643 cases. Of those, 56 have died and 509 are hospitalized.

The Health District works closely with Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) epidemiology to identify close contacts of all confirmed cases and provide the appropriate recommendations.

How the public can help:

• Do not go to the emergency room unless essential.Emergency rooms need to be able to serve those with the most critical needs.
• North Georgia Health District is coordinating with healthcare providers to determine if testing requests meet criteria for testing.
• If you have symptoms like cough, fever, or other respiratory problems, call your doctor first.
• Stay home when sick.
• Practice thorough personal hygiene habits, including handwashing, coughing into tissue or elbow, avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth.
• Avoid large gatherings of more than 10 people and maintain social distancing by keeping at least 6 feet away from others
• Stay informed. Information is changing frequently. Check the Health District’s website  or follow us on social media.

As we anticipate more cases, the North Georgia Health District will not issue press releases for each individual case. Updates will be posted on the Georgia Department of Public Health COVID-19 Daily Status Report here  at 12 PM and 7 PM and will be shared on the Health District’s social media pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

For now, Nicholson encourages everyone to continue self-isolation, social distancing and hand washing.

Previous story

The North Georgia Health District has received notice that residents in Cherokee and Pickens counties, who had previously been listed in the Georgia Department of Public Health COVID-19 Daily Status Report as confirmed cases, have now sadly passed away.

The Cherokee County resident was a female in her 60s, and the Pickens County resident was a female in her 70s. Both were hospitalized at the time of death with underlying health conditions.

These are the first deaths in the North Georgia Health District of residents who had been confirmed as being infected with COVID-19. The Health District is comprised of Cherokee, Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens, and Whitfield counties.

At the time of this announcement, county-by-county numbers of confirmed cases so far in the Health District included:

• Cherokee County: 46 (including the death)
• Fannin: 2
• Pickens: 4 (including the death)
• Whitfield: 6

The Health District works closely with Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) epidemiology to identify close contacts of all confirmed cases and provide the appropriate recommendations.

How the public can help:

• Do not go to the emergency room unless essential. Emergency rooms need to be able to serve those with the most critical needs.
• North Georgia Health District is coordinating with healthcare providers to determine if testing requests meet criteria for testing.
• If you have symptoms like cough, fever, or other respiratory problems, call your doctor first.
• Stay home when sick.
• Practice thorough personal hygiene habits, including handwashing, coughing into tissue or elbow, avoid touching eyes, nose, or mouth.
• Avoid large gatherings of more than 10 people and maintain social distancing by keeping at least 6 feet away from others
• Stay informed. Information is changing frequently. Check the Health District’s website (http://bit.ly/COVID19-Updates-NorthGA) or follow us on social media.

As we anticipate more cases, the North Georgia Health District will not issue press releases for each individual case. Updates will be posted on the Georgia Department of Public Health COVID-19 Daily Status Report at https://dph.georgia.gov/covid-19-daily-status-report at 12 PM and 7 PM and will be shared on the Health District’s social media pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

See the press release document here. First Confirmed Coronavirus (COVID-19) Deaths in Health District Cherokee and Pickens County Residents – Press Release