This illustration, created at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reveals ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses. Note the spikes that adorn the outer surface of the virus, which impart the look of a corona surrounding the virion, when viewed by electron microscope. A novel coronavirus, named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was identified as the cause of an outbreak of respiratory illness first detected in Wuhan, China in 2019. The illness caused by this virus has been named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAMS
Ingham County Health Department (ICHD) confirmed a new outbreak of COVID-19 at the Riverfront Animal Hospital in Lansing on July 4.
Amanda Darche, public information officer at the ICHD, stated in an announcement there were originally three people who visited the veterinary clinic between June 23 and July 2 that tested positive for the virus.
Now, Darche said the case count has risen to 10. Contact tracing is still ongoing, and the department suspects they will find additional cases. However, in the meantime, the Riverfront Animal Hospital has been closed and it will remain closed during further investigation.
The ICHD advises anyone who was also at the veterinary clinic between those dates to monitor themselves for symptoms, potentially seek testing and to isolate.
Symptoms may not fully develop until up to 14 days after exposure, and asymptomatic infections can occur and are equally as contagious.
Similarly, Darche said that the outbreak at Harper's Brew Pub and Restaurant has continued to grow. The case count currently sits at 170, with 138 primary infections and 32 secondary infections.
Primary infections are those who were directly on site during the exposure period, while secondary infections are those who came in contact with a person of primary infection.
Darche said those who were at Harper's between June 12 and 20 are now outside the incubation period and do not need to self-quarantine unless informed otherwise by health officials. Nobody is hospitalized at this time.
"I strongly encourage everybody in our community to wear a mask and stay 6 feet away from others. We will likely continue to see public exposures like (these). Anytime you are in public, there is that potential," ICHD Health Officer Linda Vail said.
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