Tennessee Number One For Covid

Tennessee now leads the nation in Covid cases. According to researchers from Johns Hopkins, 1 out of every 81 citizens in the state tested positive for the virus within the last week…ranking Tennessee as number one in Covid cases per capita. According to Johns Hopkins researchers, the average number of new cases has risen 90% since August 29th…to an average of 12,000 new cases a day across the state. However over the last 2 weeks, the amount of new cases in Cocke County and surrounding counties has actually gone down. As of yesterday there were 494 active cases in Cocke County.

The surge in cases has led to a problem for First Call Ambulance service which handles Cocke County. With Covid cases being piled on top of regular calls, it has put a strain on crews and call times. Wait times to drop off patients at the hospital can sometimes be as long as 90 minutes while the emergency room looks for places to put incoming patients.