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76 COVID cases since pandemic started: Up by 4 from last week

Island COVID cases were up by four again this week, bringing the total to 76 since Suffolk County began tallying the numbers in 2020, according to Deputy Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams. That includes an additional confirmed case on Wednesday, according to Police Chief Jim Read.

“We really have to be vigilant,” the chief told the Town Board at Tuesday’s work session. He encouraged those with any concerns to get tested as soon as possible and advised wearing masks to avoid passing COVID-19 or the Delta variant to others.

He confirmed some staff on South Ferry tested positive and those have already been accounted for in his numbers. South Ferry has made adjustments in its operations to account for tight staffing and efforts to stop further spread of illness.

Booster shots might be necessary for those who got the Pfizer vaccine, but the chief advised residents to check with their doctors, suggesting it might not be necessary to open a vaccination site on the Island when the vaccine will be readily available on the North and South forks.

There has been no word yet from Stony Brook Southampton or Eastern Long Island hospitals, but the general advice is that the boosters be taken six to eight months after the second Pfizer inoculation was administered, he said.

Councilman Jim Colligan noted that the Island had two residents succumb to COVID-19 early in 2020, but since then, no Islanders have died from the illness.