×

UPDATED: PI County COVID-19 report causes confusion

News File Photo Alpena Township emergency medical technicians prepare to transport a patient at MidMichigan Medical Center-Alpena, where signs of appreciation line the lab windows in this March 2020 News archive photo.

ROGERS CITY — A case of COVID-19 was detected in Presque Isle County, the state reported Friday, though local health officials said they could not confirm that information and county emergency officials said the state made a mistake, illustrating some of the problems with tracking the spread of the global disease.

As of 4 p.m. Friday, District Health Department No. 4 was unable to confirm a positive test anywhere in Alpena, Montmorency, or Presque Isle counties. No notification of a positive result had been received from the state before the state’s numbers were posted at 3 p.m., Cathy Goike, public health educator with District Health Department No. 4, said in an email.

“We have not been contacted, it has not been verified with us, it is not in our reporting system,” Goike said.

The Presque Isle County Office of Emergency Management said in a Facebook post around 5 p.m. there was “an error in documentation” and there was no Presque Isle County case, though that office issued no press release and there was no release from the Health Department after 5 p.m.

The state’s database still listed a Presque Isle County case as of 10 p.m.

If state information is correct, it is the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the Alpena region.

No further information was available about the person who may have tested positive.

Further investigation into other state numbers has resulted in a change to the state’s online COVID-19 reporting, Goike said, usually as dual-residency is confirmed or a data input error is detected.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today