The biggest increase was in the Delta, where Lincoln County, population 13,695, had an 85 percent increase in COVID-19 on a per capita cases between Nov. 26 and Jan. 7.
Arkansas’ border counties recorded big spikes in the virus. Chicot County, located along the Arkansas-Mississippi border with a population of 10,826, saw an 81 percent increase in per capita cases.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson has attributed the surge to Thanksgiving and encouraged those traveling for Christmas to get rapid COVID-19 tests and minimize social gatherings.
Statewide, Arkansas recorded a 51% increase in COVID-19 related deaths in December. On New Year’s Day, the state Health Department reported a new daily high of 4,304 cases statewide, indicating the holiday COVID-19 surge is merely beginning.
