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Coronavirus coverage

New COVID cases remain in double-digits, but hospitalizations largely unchanged

New daily confirmed cases of COVID-19 remain in the double-digits in Chautauqua County, but hospitalizations have largely stayed the same. The county Health Department recorded 26 new cases on Wednesday, which includes information collected the previous day. The cases break down as follows: seven in the Fredonia zip code, three in Dunkirk, two each in Jamestown, Brocton, Frewsburg and Lakewood, and one each in Silver Creek, Cassadaga, Chautauqua, Kennedy, Mayville, Panama, Sinclairville and Westfield. A key measure in tracking COVID has been those with the virus in the hospital. In ...

Seneca Nation reaching out to schools for vaccines

With Western New York possibly facing a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Seneca Nation is reaching out to neighboring school districts near its Cattaraugus and Allegany territories to help make vaccines accessible for eligible students and staff. The Nation recently notified district leaders at Gowanda, Silver Creek, Lake Shore and Salamanca that eligible students and staff can make vaccine appointments with the Seneca Nation Health System on target dates over the next two weeks. “The recent rise in cases in the region, particularly among people 19 and younger, makes the ...

New variants may be cause of higher COVID cases in WNY

Officials believe the new COVID-19 variants may be the cause of the increase of deaths and positive cases in Western New York. From Friday to Sunday, the Chautauqua County Health Department reported 93 new coronavirus cases and two additional deaths. The two individuals who passed away were males. One was in his 60s and the other in his 80s. Overall, there have been 8,744 cases with 209 currently active and 8,391 recoveries. There has been 144 deaths linked to the virus locally. According to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Western New York has the highest positive percentage result in the ...

County recognizes week 10 COVID-19 heroes

MAYVILLE — Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel and the COVID-19 Response Team recently announced the tenth week of COVID-19 Hero nominations for April 12-16. Nominations are recognized in a video posted weekdays on the Chautauqua County Government Facebook page, and each nominee receives a personal note from the County Executive’s Office. “This week we again recognized a tremendous group of frontline workers often putting the safety and wellbeing of others before their own,” said County Executive PJ Wendel. “I want to again personally thank our week nine nominees: Willard ...

New York eases capacity rules for museums, movie theaters

ALBANY (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is allowing more people inside museums, movie theaters and indoor sports arenas as the latest data suggests the state's vaccination campaign is curbing COVID-19 infection levels. The state recorded just under 43,000 new cases in the seven-day period ...

Getting vaccinated is good for our families, community and economy

Getting vaccinated will help keep you, your family, your community, the economy, and your country safe and healthy. Chautauqua County is at concerning turning point in the battle against COVID-19. Just a few short weeks ago we couldn’t get enough of the vaccines to meet the demand. Now, we are seeing a new struggle in how to fill the appointment spaces available and use all of the doses allocated for our people. The data shows that there is vaccine hesitancy in many rural areas of the United States including Western New York and the Southern Tier. Simultaneously COVID cases are ...