Monday South Heartland District Health Department (SHDHD) officials reported three additional COVID-19-related deaths of previously reported cases, bringing the health district total to fifty-five (55). Michele Bever, the department’s director, said the deaths were Clay County residents, including a woman in her 90s, a woman in her 60s, and a woman in her 50s.

Bever also reported 24 lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases in the previous four days (Feb. 5 to 8), averaging six new cases per day and bringing the cumulative number of cases in the four-county health district to 4,362. The new confir...