COVID-19 cases spike across Imperial Valley after Christmas

COVID-19 testing kits on the verge of running out - News 11's Wiley Jawhary reports

EL CENTRO, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - The Imperial County Public Health Department (ICPHD) says COVID-19 cases across the Imperial Valley are going up after Christmas gatherings.

To make matters worse, COVID-19 testing kits are running low once again. To hopefully minimize some stress, the public health department is placing an order for more testing kits to avoid running out, since the demand is so high.

Public health officials want to remind residents they could have the virus and be spreading it without even knowing.

Epidemiologist Karla Lopez with ICPHD says the recent numbers are concerning.

"Unfortunately there has been an increase in cases compared to previous weeks, right now we have a positivity rate of 16.1%," she said.

Currently, there are 729 active cases of COVID-19 across the Valley.

The holidays aren’t over yet, that’s why public health officials say they fear more cases will show up after the new year.