COVID-19 is very much still a threat in Cibola County. As of December 26, there are 393 active cases of COVID in Cibola. Over the year, this disease killed at least 47 people – not every single COVID death is properly attributed, and given the very high spread of COVID-19 through the community, it is very likely that the true death toll in Cibola is undercounted. 208 residents of Cibola have died from this disease since it started in 2020.
Experts say that mask wearing and social distancing remain the best and most effective way to cut the spread of disease. With holiday celebrations starting to wind down, history shows that Cibola should prepare for a spike in COVId-19 cases.
Currently, the COVID-19 situation in Cibola is worse than it has been in months. COVID hasn’t been this bad since the end of August when Cibola had 410 active cases of COVID-19. Look forward to next week’s edition where the Cibola Citizen will break down all of the data for December. 2020
COVID-19 started in 2020. Officially, the disease was declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020.
Just 13 days after the pandemic was declared, Cibola County had its very first case of COVID19 on March 24. This was the first officially recorded case of COVID19, but it’s unlikely that was the first COVID case in the county because the first officially recorded death from COVID came only days later, on April 1.
COVID-19 cases would only continue to grow. New Mexico would join the rest of the country and the world by shutting down. Cibola County ended up in a messy political fight between the Grants Mayor and the New Mexico Governor about closing down private businesses.
The end of November would see the single largest spike to that point in COVID-19 infractions. There were two days in November, the 19th and 23rd, where Cibola recorded over 90 new COVID infections. This was a massive undercount from the true toll of the disease.
2020 ended after leaving at least 63 residents of Cibola dead. As if the year wasn’t bad enough, November introduced the Delta Variant of COVID, which was far more transmissible. This led to an explosion in COVID cases at the end of the month that fed into December. 2021
Delta was not quite as deadly as the original form of COVID-19, but it was far more transmissible. While Delta took the rest of the country by storm, much like it did to Cibola in late 2020, it also infected so many people that natural immunity began to set in. Unfortunately, natural immunity did not last long and many people were reinfected.
2021 would see a little change through the year with the COVID situation, but the many states would remain closed down and many people would stay in their homes to avoid getting sick.
It wasn’t until the end of September when a variant worse than Delta, called Omicron, would begin to surface that COVID would begin to spike again in Cibola.
The end of September began a steep and deadly climb in COVID-19 infections.
There were a number of data issues with the numbers that came from the State of New Mexico. This made it very difficult to properly track deaths and infections as the state would add deaths and infections and then remove them the next day with no warning whatsoever. Data issues continue to plague New Mexico’s understanding of the true COVID-19 toll.
2022
This was a much better year for Cibola’s fight against COVID-19. Cases remained relatively stable, only spiking in the summer and only slightly after holidays like Halloween.
For the most part, cases remained stable in 2022. New Mexico rarely reports cases and then removes them without warning, though it does still happen.
To see how far COVID increased this year, dive into the numbers: People aged 0-9 started the year with only 446 cases, and ended the year with 1011 cases. This is an increase of 565 infections.
Residents aged 10-19 started the year with 633 cases, this group ended the year with 1389 cases. This is an increase of 756 cases.
Those Cibolans aged 20-29 began the year with 737 cases, and ended the year with 1,368 cases. This is an increase of 631 cases.
Cibolans aged 30-39 started the year with 713 cases, and ended the year with 1,369 cases. This is an increase of 656 cases.
Residents aged 40-49 began the year with 603 cases, and ended the year with 1,251 cases. This is an increase of 648 cases.
People aged 50-59 started the year with 571 cases, and ended the year with 1090 cases. This is an increase of 519 cases.
Residents aged 60-69 started the year with 411 cases, and ended the year with 846 cases. This is an increase of 435 cases.
People aged 70-79 started the year 220 cases, and ended the year with 471 cases. This is an increase of 251 cases.
Residents 80-89 started with 126 cases, and ended the year with 227 cases. This is an increase of 101 cases.
Residents 90+ began the year with 33 cases, and ended the year with 54 cases. This is an increase of 21 cases.
The deadliest month in 2022 was January, where at least 12 Cibola residents died of COVID19. Overall, this year, at least 47 Cibola residents have died to the virus.
Altogether, at least 208 residents of Cibola have died to COVID-19. This data comes as Respiratory Viruses, including COVID-19, RSV, and the flu have been on the rise, overwhelming hospitals, including Cibola General Hospital.