LYNCHBURG, Va. – As Liberty University continues its campus-wide quarantine, the school is now reporting 488 total active cases of coronavirus and more than 1,000 on-campus students in quarantine, according to the school’s dashboard which was last updated on Wednesday.
While the number of cumulative positive cases has seen a six-fold increase over a week, from 86 reported on Aug. 24 to 535 reported on Aug. 31, the university states that the percentage of active cases makes up just 1.69% of the total campus population.
“We saw the same thing last year,” Jr. Hannah Robertson says. “With everyone coming back from all different places, I expected this to happen.”
The university describes an “active” case as one that has been reported in the last ten days where the quarantine period has not ended.
Liberty went into a campus-wide quarantine on Aug. 30 that is set to last until Sept. 10. During that period, all classes are being held online, large indoor gatherings have been suspended and dining locations will be take-out only.
Some students say they saw it coming.
“We saw the same thing last year,” said junior Hannah Robertson. “With everyone coming back from all different places, I expected this to happen.”
The rise in cases also has people living in Lynchburg, like Kayla Thompson, concerned.
“Nobody is six-foot, everybody has no mask on,” she said. “They should take it more seriously than they are.”
On Tuesday, we reported that the annex being used to house students told to quarantine has reached maximum capacity.
Here’s a breakdown of the active cases reported on Sept. 1:
- Active student cases: 430
- Active faculty/staff cases: 58
- Total active cases: 488
Here’s a breakdown of the campus population in quarantine as of Sept. 1:
- On-campus students in quarantine: 1,056
- Commuters instructed to quarantine: 327
- Employees instructed to quarantine: 154
While local health officials are encouraging schools to take mitigation measures, they say there’s only so much they can do.
“We are here to provide them with the information and support. We are here for them,” Centra Health’s Dr. Michael Elliot said. “Ultimately, it’s their decision to make.”