Coronavirus updates: Sacramento-area businesses respond to employee infections
Ahead of the Fourth of July weekend — a time normally celebrated with large gatherings that are now frowned upon by health officials — coronavirus continues to sweep through California at an alarming rate.
Following California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Wednesday order halting indoor operations at entertainment venues and restaurants in 19 counties, including Sacramento County, many people have had to scuttle holiday plans. Bars, indoor wineries and card rooms also were shut down..
The order came on the heels of waves of new COVID-19 cases across the state and rising hospitalization rates. Data from the California Department of Public Health shows that a total of 240,000 people have tested positive for the highly contagious virus in the state and more than 6,100 people have died of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.
State health officials have reported a marked increase in coronavirus cases since about mid-June, roughly coinciding with greater economic reopenings that have since been largely rolled back. Experts have said, however, that the largest cause of the surge has been home gatherings for birthdays, or graduation parties, or other celebrations that bring large groups of people together into close quarters, circumstances which lend themselves to transmission of viral diseases.
As new cases continue to pour in, California’s coronavirus tracking data continued to break records for daily increases in infections. On June 20, 4,515 new positive test results were added to the state infection total. Then, on June 22, that record was broken when 5,019 more patients were added, and a day later, on June 23, a whopping 7,149 more patients were reported. On June 29, the current record for daily infections was set, with 9,480 cases reported in a single day.
With the rise in infection has come increasing hospitalizations. Currently, 5,355 Californians are being hospitalized with COVID-19. Of those, 1,676 are being treated in intensive care units. On June 19, 3,494 people had been hospitalized, meaning that in two weeks almost 2,000 new patients were admitted to hospitals in California.
The rate at which hospitalizations have been occurring in the state rivals that of the early days of the pandemic, when patients began flooding hospitals with flu-like symptoms. Comparatively, the span between late April and mid-June was much more stable in terms of hospitalizations, even decreasing slightly from April 19, when 3,497 people were hospitalized, down to 3,101 patients on June 14.
Sacramento County currently has 89 ICU beds available for its roughly 1.5 million residents, according to state data. Placer County has 28 beds open, while El Dorado County has four and Yolo County has just one bed available.
In Sacramento County, 109 patients are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, and 31 of them are in an ICU. On June 19, there were just 37 patients hospitalized for coronavirus - an increase of almost 200 percent in just two weeks. The county has reported a total of 3,671 coronavirus cases and 69 deaths as of Friday morning. On Thursday, 162 new cases and one death were added to the total and 112 more infections were added Friday. Sacramento County saw its largest daily increase in cases on Monday, when 228 positive test results were announced.
Placer County has reported 754 infections and 11 total deaths as of Friday, when 32 new cases were added. Placer broke its record for daily increases two days in a row this week with 41 new cases Tuesday and another 40 Wednesday. Two deaths were also reported last week, the first fatalities in about a month.
Yolo County has seen a total of 583 infections, adding 28 more on Thursday. The county added 29 new cases on Wednesday, setting a record for daily increases. On Tuesday, 25 new cases were added and 23 were added Monday. Of the county’s 24 fatalities, 17 were related to an outbreak at Stollwood Convalescent Hospital in Woodland.
Although no resident of El Dorado County has yet died of COVID-19, hospitalization rates have been increasing. Currently, 206 people have tested positive for coronavirus and five people are in the hospital, four of whom are in an ICU. There was just one person hospitalized as of June 29.
Sutter County reported nine new COVID-19 cases on Thursday and has a total of 206 cases and three deaths, with four people currently hospitalized. Yuba County also added nine cases on Thursday after reporting 19 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday. Yuba County has seen a total of 103 infections and one death due to the virus.
Worldwide, almost 11 million people have tested positive for coronavirus and 522,000 people have died. The United States accounts for about a quarter of all infections, with 2.7 million cases and 128,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
On May 21, the world total stood at 5 million infections, then doubled in about five weeks to reach 10 million infections on June 28. On April 2, the world total was 1 million people sick from the coronavirus.
Local ice cream shop shuts down temporarily
Leatherby’s Family Creamery — one of the Sacramento-area’s most beloved local institutions — will be closing its Elk Grove location temporarily after an employee there contracted coronavirus.
Leatherby’s shared an update via social media on Wednesday, alerting customers that the employee tested positive for the virus and was self-isolating at home.
As a precautionary measure, the Elk Grove shop said it would be shutting down for deep cleaning and sanitizing in order to ensure health and safety.
“Nothing is more important to our family than the health and safety of our staff and guests,” the creamery said in a statement. “Though we are an essential business and were advised and able to safely operate our business, out of precaution we are voluntarily closing our Elk Grove location today.”
Employees at the chain’s three ice cream shops have already had to take measures to prevent viral transmission, including wearing face masks and checking temperatures.
“We thank you for your patience, understanding, and patronage and look forward to welcoming you back,” Leatherby’s said. “Please check back on social (media) for an update as to when we will open that location.”
The Arden Arcade and Citrus Heights locations remain open.
Wildwood employee tests positive, closes restaurant
Wildwood Kitchen and Bar will be closing over the weekend after an employee tested positive for coronavirus.
The Arden Arcade restaurant announced the closure Thursday night, saying that a deep clean over the weekend was scheduled with plans to possibly reopen by Monday.
“We regret to inform you that today we learned a member of our staff has tested positive for COVID-19 and we will be closed effective immediately,” restaurant management said via social media. “Our priority is to do this the right way for the safety of our employees and our guests.”
The employee who tested positive is currently in self-isolation and will remain so until testing negative, according to management. Staff members at the restaurant will continue to be checked for fever at the start of every shift.
“We want to reassure you that we have had a COVID-19 plan in place and will continue to adhere by this plan upon our reopen,” Wildwood management said. “Thank you for your understanding and patience.”
Firehouse restaurant open despite former employee infection
Firehouse Restaurant will remain open, despite learning of the infection of a former staff member.
The owner of the Old Sacramento restaurant, Lloyd Harvego, said he heard that a former employee had tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday evening.
“The ex-employee has been gone for 10 or 11 days,” Harvego told The Bee. “So we put out a notice to the employees just to be aware of the fact.”
Although many other restaurants have been shutting down temporarily after discovering a possible source of infection in staff or customers, Firehouse decided against it.
“It doesn’t change anything under CDC guidelines,” Harvego said. “We clean every night ... but we wanted to notify all employees that it happened.”
The employee worked at the front end of the restaurant and was required, like all staff, to wear a mask at all times. Firehouse plans to continue to operate with its current cleaning protocol in place.
Two at Elk Grove Raley’s test positive, store remains open
Two employees at a Raley’s grocery store in Elk Grove tested positive for coronavirus, although the store has remained open.
A Raley’s Supermarkets spokesman told The Sacramento Bee that the employees worked at the store at 4900 Elk Grove Blvd., and although the store’s employees were notified of the outbreak, it was not known how many people, staff or otherwise, came into contact with the employees.
The two employees, who tested positive on June 21 and June 28, were placed on paid leave and asked to self-isolate for two weeks, while employees who came into contact with them were asked to stay home as well.
The Raley’s spokesman said that customers were sent emails warning of possible contact with the coronavirus-positive employees.
What is COVID-19? How is the coronavirus spread?
Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within 6 feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch the disease COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
Symptoms of the virus that causes COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Most develop only mild symptoms, but some people develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease is especially dangerous to the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
Sacramento Bee reporters Michael McGough and Darrell Smith contributed to this report.
This story was originally published July 3, 2020 at 10:00 AM.