No virus deaths reported Friday in region

After a rash of COVID-19-related deaths in recent days, health officials in the area reported no new fatalities in their Thursday/Friday updates.

Officials with Cape Girardeau County Public Health Center said the county's virus death toll remained 152. Confirmed virus cases, though, grew by 43 since Wednesday, and probable cases increased 10 in that time, pushing the county's total number of confirmed and probable virus cases to 12,529 for the entirety of the pandemic. As of Friday, there were 217 active virus cases in the county, down 34 since Wednesday.

Scott County officials reported 46 new confirmed cases and 11 new probable cases since Wednesday, for a total of 5,799 confirmed and probable cases throughout the pandemic. As of Friday, there were 339 active cases in the county, after active cases had totaled more than 500 in recent weeks. To date, 105 county residents have died because of the virus.

Stoddard County, Missouri, officials tallied 25 new cases since Wednesday, for a pandemic total of 4,961. On Friday, there were 108 active cases in the county. Ninety-four county residents have died because of the virus.

Health officials in Perry County, Missouri, reported 65 new cases in the past seven days and 116 active cases in the county.

After a spike in cases when classes resumed, Southeast Missouri State University has reported steadily decreasing case and quarantine numbers. As of Friday, there were 12 active cases (nine students and three employees) on campus, down one from the previous day. One person was in on-campus quarantine/isolation.