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The number of positive COVID-19 coronavirus cases reported in Cole County increased by one on Thursday afternoon.
The Cole County Health Department announced its 26th case. There are currently 20 active cases and six who have recovered.
Cole County Communicable Disease Coordinator Chezney Schulte said this latest person to test positive contracted the virus from exposure to a positive case which means they got it from close contact with someone else who had contracted the virus earlier. This person is at home in self quarantine.
Schulte said county health officials are hopeful to have more of their positive cases being released from quarantine in the next few days.
Missouri had had 1,581 confirmed cases as of Wednesday, according to the state health department, including a 19.1% increase in cases from a day earlier.
The state also has had 18 coronavirus-related deaths, including five residents of a Springfield assisted living facility and two residents at a St. Charles nursing home. Another 19 residents and staff at the nursing home have tested positive.
The virus and the efforts to slow it have taken a financial toll. Data released Thursday showed that unemployment claims in Missouri increased to 96,734 for the week ending March 28, which was up from 42,246 the prior week. That's up sharply from the same two-week period a year ago, when there were a total of 6,402 claims.
The virus also has upended education in the state. Cole County schools have extended their closures until at least the end of April.
Columbia Public Schools announced Wednesday it would pause instructions for three days because families are struggling with remote instructions introduced when schools closed, the Columbia Daily Tribune reports. The Missouri Department of Education also refuted an apparent April Fool's prank that claimed on social media that students would not advance to the next grade level because of school closures.
And the University of Missouri announced Thursday it was canceling spring graduation ceremonies but will provide a "virtual celebration" and invite graduates to participate in future ceremonies. Southeast Missouri State also announced Thursday that its graduation ceremonies will be postponed.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are among those particularly susceptible to more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The Associated Press contributed information to this report.