Local News

The University of Georgia's Health Center will begin its goal of testing 24,000 asymptomatic faculty, staff and students for COVID-19 on Monday.

The health center’s voluntary surveillance testing program is designed to identify asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers ahead of the return to campus in late August.

Death and case rates of Covid-19 reached alarming highs Friday. According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, more than 4,000 new cases were reported Friday, as well as 92 deaths. There are now over 209,000 total cases and 4,117 deaths. There have also been 280 new hospitalizations from the virus.

The University of Georgia has seen its first COVID-19 death. 32-year old Ana Cabrera was an employee of university housing. She died on July 24. Athens Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson confirmed that Cabrera's cause of death was due to the coronavirus. He could not reveal if there were any underlying health issues.

UGA Spokesman Greg Trevor released a statement about her death saying:

Georgia health officials say a 7-year-old boy with COVID-19 is the youngest known person to die in the state since the pandemic began. State data indicates that he had no other chronic health conditions. The Georgia Department of Public Health says the case is from Chatham County.

A Georgia teenager who got a five-day suspension after raising an alarm about crowded conditions at her high school says her principal called to apologize, and completely removed her punishment. Fifteen-year-old sophomore Hannah Waters shared images with The Associated Press that show most people not wearing masks in crowded hallways at her school in Dallas, Georgia.