NORTH PLATTE-On Aug. 24, 2020, the North Platte Public Schools had seven positive COVID-19 cases and 54 exposures.

Now, a year later, they’re seeing a fivefold increase, with 36 positive cases and 392 exposures, Superintendent Ron Hanson said at a Wednesday press conference at McKinley Education Center.

Currently, three NPPS schools require face coverings: Lincoln Elementary will require them until Sept. 9, Jefferson Elementary until Sept. 10 and Washington Elementary until Sept. 13.

Hanson added that there were no plans now to close any schools, “but we will do what’s safest for our students and staff.”

Area medical professionals are also feeling the strain of the delta variant of the virus, which is significantly more transmissible.

“We’re drowning,” said Dr. Renee Engler, assistant medical director of Great Plains Health’s emergency department.

At Great Plains Health, 15 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19, two of them intubated, as of Wednesday morning, GPH infection preventionist Jenny Lantis said, and the hospital is at capacity.

“As of this morning, we are full with in-patient beds. We cannot accept any more patients today,” Lantis said. “We’re expecting 14 people to discharge today, but if we had a COVID patient come in right now, we would have to try to find them a bed somewhere else.”

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