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CHARLESTON -- Active cases of the COVID-19 virus dropped 2,000 on Monday, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources said in its Monday pandemic update.
Active cases were at 1,909, about 100 less than on Friday. The number of active cases in West Virginia hasn't been below 2,000 since at least July 2021.
The state also reported 1,085 new cases were received since the last update reported on Friday.
State health officials hope the pandemic is winding down, however, deaths and hospitalizations will continue for several more weeks.
Twelve additional deaths also were reported on Monday, raising the death toll to 6,452 since the pandemic began more than two years ago.
Local deaths in Monday's report included a 74-year-old woman from Wood County. Deaths also were reported in Taylor, Upshur, Raleigh, Mineral, Cabell, Nicholas, Hampshire, Preston and Kanawha counties.
The youngest was a 45-year-old man from Cabell County.
"Too many families are experiencing the pain of loss due to COVID-19," department Secretary Bill J. Crouch said. "Please schedule your COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot today to prevent further loss of life."
Webster County turned orange, second worst level, on the County Alert System Map between Friday and Monday. While there are no red counties, the worst level on the map, eight counties are yellow and one county is gold, mid level.
Tyler and Calhoun counties are yellow. All other counties in the region are green, lowest level on the alert system based on infection rates.
Hospitalizations also declined to 404 patients from 424 on Friday. Almost 60 percent of the hospitalizations, 241, are unvaccinated.
A hundred patients are in an intensive care unit, 71 or 71 percent of those unvaccinated, and 50 are on a ventilator, 34, or 68 percent, of those unvaccinated. Six pediatric cases have been reported with two in an ICU.