Monthly Archives: February 2022

Feb. 28 COVID Update: Seven New Cases in Old Lyme Takes Cumulative Total to 1033, Lyme Holds at 255 with No New Cases

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LYME-OLD LYME — The Daily Data Report issued Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, around 4 p.m. by the Connecticut Department of Health(CT DPH) shows seven new, confirmed COVID-19 cases in Old Lyme and none in Lyme.

This means the cumulative case total for Old Lyme is 1033 while the equivalent number in Lyme remains at 255.

The next Daily Data Report will be issued by the state Tuesday, March 1, around 4 p.m.

Local Summary

The most recent day when no new cases were reported in either Lyme or Old Lyme was Thursday, Feb. 24 — the previous time before that when no new cases were reported in either town was Thursday, Dec. 12, 2021.

On the other side of the equation, however, when looking at the weekly report for the 10 member towns of the Ledge Light Health District (LLHD), Old Lyme has the highest Daily Case Rate at 33.2% with 34 cases reported in the past two weeks ending Feb. 24. Lyme, meanwhile, is in 7th place for Daily Case Rates at 18.5% with six cases reported in the past two weeks.

The next weekly LLHD report will be issued Thursday, March 3.

Statewide Situation

The state’s COVID-19 Daily Positivity Rate on Monday, Feb. 28, rose marginally to 2.58% from 2.55% on Friday, Feb. 25.

The number of COVID-related hospitalizations fell by 47 from 235 to 188.

Of those hospitalized, 83 (representing 44.1%) are not fully vaccinated.

The total number of COVID-related deaths in Connecticut remains at 10,465, according to the New York Times.

Statewide Data

In encouraging news, the Feb. 24 COVID Case Rate map shows that the total number of towns in the Red (highest) Zone for case rates has fallen by 66 since last week to 87. Twelve towns in the state are now in the Gray (lowest) Zone, 11 in the Yellow (lowest but one), and 59 in the Orange (highest but one) Zone.

This number of 87 is equivalent to 51.5% of towns in the state, which remain in the Red Zone.

All the towns in the Ledge Light Health District (LLHD), which include both Lyme and Old Lyme, are in the Red Zone.

Old Lyme is in the Red (highest) Zone for the 14th consecutive week: prior to this, the last time Old Lyme was in the Red Zone was Sept. 30, 2021. Of the 10 towns in the LLHD, Old Lyme has the highest Daily Case Rate at 33.2% with 34 cases reported in the past two weeks.

Lyme is in the Red Zone for the 12th week in succession. Of the 10 towns in the LLHD, Lyme has the 7th highest Daily Case Rate at 18.5% with six cases reported in the past two weeks.

The CT DPH will issue an updated map of the zones Thursday, March 3 — the map is updated weekly on Thursdays.

The color-coded zones are:

  • Red: Indicates case rates over the last two weeks of greater than 15 per 100,000 population
  • Orange: Indicates case rates between 10 to 14 cases per 100,000 population
  • Yellow: Indicates case rates between 5 and 9 per 100,000 population
  • Gray: Indicates case rates lower than five per 100,000 population

Extracts from the Feb. 24, 2022 CT DPH report

As of Feb. 23, 2022: (the number in parentheses is from Feb. 16, 2022)

  • Number of cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated persons in Connecticut: 170,997 (167,783)
  • Number of fully vaccinated persons in Connecticut:  2,655,982 (2,640,845)
  • Percent of fully vaccinated persons, who have contracted COVID-19: 6.44% (6.35%)

For the week beginning Feb. 13, 2022: (the number in parentheses is from Feb. 06, 2022)

  • Risk of unvaccinated persons testing positive for COVID-19 as compared to fully vaccinated persons: 2.9 x greater (3.1 x greater)
  • Risk of unvaccinated persons dying from COVID-19 as compared to fully vaccinated persons: 8.4 x greater (18.1% x greater)

Increase in Cases in Lyme & Old Lyme Since August 2021

The cumulative total of confirmed cases for Old Lyme has now increased by 590 since Wednesday, Nov. 10, when the total stood at 443 — that number had stood unchanged for a week since the previous Thursday, Nov. 4.

On Aug. 26 — which was the day Lyme-Old Lyme Schools started the new academic year — Old Lyme’s cumulative case total stood at 372, meaning there have now been 661 new cases there since that date. Meanwhile, Lyme’s cumulative total on Aug. 26 was 114 indicating 141 new cases have also been confirmed there during the same period.

Ledge Light Health District Update

All the towns in the Ledge Light Health District (LLHD), of which both Lyme and Old Lyme are members, are in the Red Zone. In the past two weeks, Lyme has had 6 new cases while Old Lyme has reported 34 — the previous week’s numbers were 18 and 53.

In an email sent Friday, Feb. 25, regarding the latest COVID-19 data, Ledge Light Health District (LLHD) Director of Health Stephen Mansfield states, “Although the number of new cases and hospitalizations continues to decrease, we are still experiencing high average daily case rates, and a continued focus on preventing transmission is important.”

He continues, “Based on the current level of community transmission, both the Connecticut Department of Public Health and the CDC continue to recommend that everyone wear a mask indoors, regardless of vaccination status.”

Finally, he states, “LLHD continues to focus our vaccination efforts on homebound populations and providing initial vaccinations and boosters to individuals who were vaccinated previously. Information about vaccination opportunities can be found at https://llhd.org/coronavirus-covid-19-situation/covid-19-vaccine/.”

COVID testing opportunities can be found at COVID-19 Testing | Ledge Light Health District (llhd.org)

The following link provides centralized access to Connecticut COVID data: https://data.ct.gov/stories/s/COVID-19-data/wa3g-tfvc/

The next Ledge Light update is due Thursday, March 3, 2022.

Fatalities Due to COVID-19 in Lyme, Old Lyme

There has been one COVID-related fatality of a Lyme resident: a 57-year-old male passed away Nov. 16, 2021. On Nov. 30, the state finally included this fatality in its data

Four COVID-related fatalities have now been reported in Old Lyme. The first two fatalities from Old Lyme, which were reported in 2020, were a 61-year-old female and an 82-year-old male.

Details of the third and fourth fatalities, which were reported respectively in 2021 and on Feb. 4, 2022, have not been made available.

Lyme-Old Lyme Schools Update

Under new state protocols for schools, Lyme-Old Lyme (LOL) Schools are no longer required to carry out contact tracing , but LOL Schools Superintendent Ian Neviaser said in a Feb. 17 email to the school community that, “Through the end of March we will continue to send daily COVID-19 case numbers for those who are interested in tracking this information.”

He added, “Beginning in April, we will report these numbers on a weekly basis.”

A full listing of all LOL Schools-related cases during 2022 is given below.

This week is Winter Break for LOL Schools and so no further case reporting will be announced until Monday, Feb. 28, when no cases were reported.

Lyme-Old Lyme Schools closed Dec. 23, 2021 and reopened Monday, Jan. 3, 2022 after the winter break meaning no new cases were reported by the schools during that period. We are no longer including positive cases impacting LOL schools between Aug 26, 2021 (the first day of the 2021-22 academic school year) and Dec. 23, 2021 (the last day of school before winter break began), in this report. During that period contact tracing was still required.

View the full listing of cases during that period (8/26/21 – 12/23/21) at this link.

The listing below is the latest information that we have with the most recent cases first — there may have been further updates, however, which we have not yet received.

The following abbreviations are used in the lists below: LOLHS: Lyme-Old Lyme High School, LOLMS: Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School, CS: MC: Mile Creek School, and Center School Pre-Kindergarten

Friday, Feb. 18
Total: LOLMS: 1, MC: 1

Thursday, Feb. 17
Total: 1,  MC: 1

Wednesday, Feb. 16
Total: 6, LOLMS: 3

Monday, Feb. 14
Total: 6, LOLMS: 2, MC: 3, Lyme: 1

Sunday, Feb. 13
Total: 3, LOLMS: 2, MC: 1

Friday, Feb. 11
Total: 2, LOLHS: 1, CS: 1

Thursday, Feb. 10
Total: 2, Lyme: 1, CS: 1

Wednesday, Feb. 9
Total: 2, LOLHS: 1, MC: 1

Tuesday, Feb. 8
Total: 0

Monday, Feb. 7
Total: 3, Lyme: 1, MC: 1, CS: 1

Sunday, Feb. 6
Total: 2, LOLMS: 1, MC: 1

Friday, Feb. 4
Total: 5, LOLHS: 2, LOLMS: 1, MC: 2

Thursday, Feb. 3
Total: 1, Lyme: 1

Wednesday, Feb. 2
Total: 3, MC: 3

Tuesday, Feb. 1
Total: 1, MC: 1

JANUARY 2022
Monday, 1/31: Total: 2, LOLMS: 1, Lyme: 1
Sunday, 1/30: Total: 1, Lyme: 1
Friday, 1/28: Total: 3, LOLHS: 1, LOLMS: 1, MC: 1
Thursday, 1/27: Total: 3, LOLHS: 1, Lyme: 2
Wednesday, 1/26: Total: 3, LOLHS: 1, MC: 2
Tuesday, 1/25: Total: 4, LOLMS: 2, MC: 2
Monday, 1/24:Total: 9, LOLHS: 2, LOLMS: 1, Lyme: 1, MC: 4, CS: 1
Sunday, 1/23:Total: 3, LOLMS: 1, Lyme: 2
Friday, 1/21:Total: 8, LOLHS: 4, LOLMS: 2, MC: 2
Thursday, 1/20: Total: 5, LOLMS: 1, MC: 1, Lyme: 3
Wednesday, 1/19: Total: 7, LOLHS: 2, LOLMS: 4, CS: 1
Tuesday, 1/18: Total: 7, LOLHS: 3, LOLMS: 2, MC: 2
Monday, 1/17: Total: 6, Lyme: 4, MC: 2
Friday, 1/14: Total: 3, MC: 2, LOLHS: 1
Wednesday, 1/12: Total: 3, MC: 2, LOLMS: 1
Monday, 1/10: Total: 3, CS: 1, Lyme: 2
Sunday, 1/9: Total: 2, MC: 1, Lyme: 1
Friday, 1/7: Total: 1, MC: 1:
Thursday, 1/6: Total: 7, LOLHS: 5, Lyme: 1, CS: 1
Wednesday, 1/5: Total: 14, LOLHS: 6, MC: 1, Lyme: 3, CS: 4
Tuesday, 1/4: Total: 5, LOLHS: 4, CS: 1

Florence Griswold Museum Hosts Exhibition of Historic Quilts, Bedcovers Through May 1, Masterpieces from Local Area

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Attributed to Jerusha Foote Johnson (1755‒1831), Colchester, Bed rug, 1782. Wool, Collection of Rick and Susan Copeland.

OLD LYME — A new exhibition titled,  New London County Quilts and Bed Covers, 1750–1825, is on view at the Florence Griswold Museum (FGM) in Old Lyme through May 1, 2022. The exhibition examines some of America’s most celebrated items of textile folk art, all produced here in the southeastern corner of Connecticut.

Curated by Lynne Z. Bassett, this exhibition of rare beauty and historic value is an important addition to women’s and Connecticut history and contributes significant scholarship in the field of American textile history.

Unidentified maker, Quilted petticoat fragment, ca. 1750‒1760. Silk, wool, DAR Museum, Gift of Mrs. Robert Weber.

The project began in August 2019 when Bassett, a leading historical textile expert, visited the Museum on a research trip to examine a whitework quilt in the FGM collection. She had become intrigued by the extraordinary tradition of New London County bed furnishings and garments that grew out of this part of Connecticut, which she described as a “hotbed” of uniquely excellent textiles.
In studying these objects and trying to identify their makers, she pondered the larger question: Why was such incredible work done here?

Unidentified maker, “PG”, Quilted petticoat made into a bed quilt; petticoat ca. 1750‒1760; bed quilt ca. 1810‒1840. Wool, broadcloth/muslin, International Quilt Museum, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2005.016.0001.

What started with the FGM quilt turned into discovering examples of works from an extraordinary roster of institutions: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, American Folk Art Museum, Historic Deerfield, the International Quilt Museum, the Henry Ford Museum, Winterthur Museum, and the DAR Museum.
Visit the exhibition to explore the heritage of these textiles, the ingenuity of their design inspiration and techniques, and learn how New London County fostered such exceptional handiwork.

Unidentified maker, Quilted petticoat fragment, ca. 1750‒1760. Silk, wool, DAR Museum, Gift of Mrs. Robert Weber.

This exhibition has been made possible by generous support from the Department of Economic and Community Development, Connecticut Office of the Arts, The Connecticut Cultural Fund, The Coby Foundation, Connecticut Humanities, Mr. & Mrs. J. Geddes Parsons, Bouvier Insurance, Barbara and Wayne Harms, Mr. & Mrs. Richard H. Booth, Mr. & Mrs. Jeb Embree, Dr. Margaret O’Shea & Mr. Daniel O’Shea, as well as donors to the Museum’s Annual Fund.
The Media sponsor is WSHU Public Radio.

Death of George M. Kovak Announced, Brother of Richard of Old Lyme

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ROCHESTER, NH — George M. Kovak, 89, died Jan 29, 2022 at Rochester Manor, Rochester, NH. He was born on 23 Oct 1932 in Rockville, CT to Michael and Helen (Kapa) Kovak…

He married Marion Dupre on 5 May 1956 in Old Saybrook where they lived most of their married lives …

They moved to Fla following his retirement and then to Rochester, NH where he spent his remaining years with his children.

George is survived by his daughter Dolores and husband Gene Gauvin; son, George and wife Angel Kovak; daughter Kim and husband Marvin Gerrish; 7 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren and his brother Richard of Old Lyme …

Visit this link to read the full obituary published Feb. 23, in the Hartford Courant.

Death Announced of Aiden Ryder Colangeli, 16, of Old Lyme

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OLD LYME — With heavy hearts we announce the sudden death of Aiden Ryder Colangeli who passed away Feb. 18, 2022, at the age of 16. He was born May 22, 2005

He was the son of Steven Colangeli, stepmom Dovie Hunt; and cherished grandson of Rick and Carol Colangeli; and much loved nephew to Anne Colangeli and Julie Colangeli (fiancé Scott Ferbert);  …

A celebration of Aiden’s life will be held in Vermont, in the near future …

Visit this link to read the full obituary published Feb. 27, in The Day.

Neviaser Announces Masks No Longer Required on Lyme-Old Lyme School Buses

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LYME/OLD LYME — Following on from his decision announced Thursday, Feb. 17, that masks will no longer required in Lyme-Old Lyme (LOL) Schools from Feb. 28 onward, LOL Schools Superintendent Ian Neviaser has now decided that masks will no longer be mandatory on school buses.

He had previously said masks would continue to be required on school buses since, “that is governed by the federal government, not the state of Connecticut.”

Lyme-Old Lyme Schools reopen Monday, Feb. 28, after a week of winter vacation.

Just after 5 p.m. Sunday (Feb. 27), Neviaser sent out an email to the school community explaining,” On Friday, February 25, 2022 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a new framework to monitor the level of COVID-19 in communities that includes hospitalizations, hospital capacity, and cases.”

In the email, Neviaser noted, “This new tool and guidance does not change the recent school masking guidance released by the Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) or our recent position statement on optional masking in our schools.”

But he pointed out, “As a part of that announcement, the CDC also announced the following: Effective February 25, 2022, CDC is exercising its enforcement discretion to not require that people wear masks on buses or vans operated by public or private school systems, including early care and education/child care programs.

Neviaser concluded in his email, “As such, masks will no longer be required on all Lyme-Old Lyme buses.  Individuals who choose to continue to wear a mask on the bus will still be able to do so.”