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Spread of delta variant causes spike in COVID-19 deaths across Chattanooga region in August

Staff photo by Troy Stolt / Robin Hoffecker fills doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine during a student vaccination event at Chattanooga State on Aug. 20 in Chattanooga. The event, put on by the city in partnership with Lifespring, was the first of a new incentive program that offered students 12 and up $100 to get vaccinated for COVID-19.
Staff photo by Troy Stolt / Robin Hoffecker fills doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine during a student vaccination event at Chattanooga State on Aug. 20 in Chattanooga. The event, put on by the city in partnership with Lifespring, was the first of a new incentive program that offered students 12 and up $100 to get vaccinated for COVID-19. Staff photo by Troy Stolt / Robin Hoffecker fills doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine during a student vaccination event at Chattanooga State on Aug. 20 in Chattanooga. The event, put on by the city in partnership with Lifespring, was the first of a new incentive program that offered students 12 and up $100 to get vaccinated for COVID-19.

By Wyatt Massey 2 min read

Hamilton County and the surrounding region experienced a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in August, a step back in months of progress against the pandemic.

Hamilton County reported 40 new COVID-19 deaths in August, higher than the previous four months combined.

The 21-county region including Hamilton County, which includes parts of Georgia and Alabama, reported 114 COVID-19 deaths in August, according to each state’s statewide health department.

That figure is well short of the single-month record of 455 in January, but it represents the most significant increase in deaths since early spring, when case totals dropped dramatically.

The spread of the delta variant erased Hamilton County’s summer progress against the pandemic as the vaccination pace dropped in the late spring and the highly contagious variant sent hospital levels surging. As of Tuesday, a record-high 280 people were hospitalized with the virus in Hamilton County hospitals, according to the Hamilton County Health Department.