Coroner: Chesco seeing ‘sharp rise’ in COVID deaths

As the saying goes, folks in Chester County may be done with COVID, but COVID and especially the new Omicron variant are not done with Chester County: the county’s Coroner says that deaths are increasing from the virus this month — a majority coming from those who have not been vaccinated. Dr. Christina VandePol, Chester County Coroner, issued a statement Tuesday outlining the spike in deaths...

Coroner says 7 deaths due to cold weather

The Chester County Coroner’s Office has investigated seven winter weather-related fatalities so far this year. Hypothermia caused or contributed to the deaths of six Chester County residents. Four persons were found outdoors and two died inside homes with inadequate or no heat. Ages of these decedents ranged from 59 to 87, and all but one were male. Alcohol intoxication played a role in one death,...

Coroner: COVID deaths spiking in county, again

Chester County Coroner Office Transporter T.J. Greene disinfects a vehicle between transports.Courtesy Chester County Coroner Office The Chester County Coroner Office is reporting a second surge in COVID-19 deaths in Chester County. After a slowdown in infections and deaths during the summer months, 136 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported since October 1, with 82 in the first 3 weeks of December....

Chesco Coroner reports COVID-19 deaths down in nursing homes

WEST CHESTER — The Chester County Coroner’s Office  reported a significant drop in the number of nursing home residents dying with COVID-19 in June and July, officials said Friday. In May, 135 such deaths were reported, compared to 25 in June and 8 so far in July. For all of 2020 to date, 380 COVID-19 deaths have been reported to the Coroner’s Office, with 318 (83.6%) being residents of long...

Coroner: COVID-19 deaths appear to be declining

WEST CHESTER — The Chester County Coroner’s Office released data Monday showing that the number of new COVID-19 deaths reported for the past week was 39, down from a high of 56 in the week ending April 19, 2020. The first confirmed COVID-19 death in Chester County occurred on March 28, 2020, with rapid increases in the number of deaths reported weekly thereafter. As of midnight May 3, 2020, the...

Muth, VanDePol call for investigation of COVID-19 deaths at Southeast Veterans’ Center

The Southeast Veterans’ Center State Senator Katie Muth (D-44) and Chester County Coroner Christina VandePol, M.D. are calling for an immediate investigation into the handling of the COVID-19 outbreak at the Southeast Veterans’ Center in East Vincent Township, Chester County. As of Sunday, April 26, 27 COVID-related deaths were reported to the Chester County Coroner’s Office, the...

COVID-19 Update, April 21: State’s death toll passes 1,500

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times @mikemcgannpa While the toll on Pennsylvania and Chester County from COVID-19 is evident, new information gathered by the state Department of Health (DOH) suggests the amount of loss to the virus statewide has been heavier than originally thought. DOH has been updating how it gathers information on COVID-19 deaths and added 360 new fatalities to the overall statewide...

COVID-19 Update, April 10: Cases, deaths spike again in Pa., Chester County

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Some parts of the country may be seeing an apex in COVID-19 cases, it appears both Pennsylvania and Chester County are not there yet, as both new cases and deaths spiked again on Thursday. The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) said there were 1,751 new cases reported, bringing the state’s total to 19,979; deaths also increased to 78, boosting the statewide...

COVID-19 Update, April 9: Wolf moves to close schools for remainder of the year

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Gov. Tom Wolf moved Thursday to end all in person school instruction for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year, as the state added nearly 2,000 new positive COVID-19 cases, although the number of deaths dropped to 29 on Wednesday after having been in the 70s the previous two days. Wolf announced the extension of the schools closure, noting he made the decision in...

COVID-19 Update, April 3: Pa. death toll climbs past 100, more than 8K positive tests

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times Pennsylvania passed a solemn benchmark, marking the 100th death in the state from COVID-19, as positive test results jumped 1,404 to a total of 8,420 statewide. The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) reported 12 new deaths Thursday — bringing the state total of fatalities to 102. “The continued rise in cases combined with our increasing deaths from COVID-19...