LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – The new year started with 534 reported COVID-19 cases, according to the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department. The total number of cases since the pandemic started in March is now 23,928.

The department says there were 265 cases reported on Saturday and 269 on Sunday.

According to the department, Lexington reported 5,991 new COVID-19 cases in December, with almost 50% of all cases coming in November and December. There were also 26 deaths in December.

Those numbers suggest that post-holiday surge health leaders have been warning about.

Kevin Hall, communications director for the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, says he fears a spike is ahead. He pointed to data showing that about two weeks after every major holiday in 2020, there was an increase in cases.

Hall says the number of cases isn’t only because of holiday travel, but also because of an increase of cases at Lexington’s Federal Medical Center and a backlog of cases due to the holiday break.

However, Hall said travel is a sticking point.

He says those who have traveled should isolate, social distance, wear a mask and wash hands often.

Halls says he knows there’s widespread pandemic fatigue, but he says the end is in sight and he doesn’t want Lexington to move backwards.

“We have seen cases that have been as many as 400 in a single day,” Hall said. “We never want to get back to that. We anticipate that it could get back to that between the cold weather, people not following guidelines and the general ease of people following those guidelines. We get it. You’re tired. We’re tired, but there is an end in sight, or at least a lessening of this in sight with the vaccine.”

Hall says over capacity at hospitals isn’t much of a concern right now. He says the bigger issue is making sure health care workers don’t contract the virus, which would leave hospitals with fewer employees.

To help slow the spread of COVID-19, follow these guidelines:
• Wear a cloth face-covering in public
• Avoid close contact with others
• Wash your hands often
• Stay home if you are sick.

Lexington’s COVID-19 numbers, including charts with demographics, hospitalizations and more, are updated Monday-Saturday at lfchd.org.

• 110, March
• 143, April
• 507, May
• 793, June
• 1,702 July
• 2,538, August
• 2,804, September
• 2,736, October
• 6,070, November

The county reached the following thousand-case marks on these dates:

• 23,000: Dec. 30
• 22,000: Dec. 23
• 21,000: Dec. 15
• 20,000: Dec. 10
• 19,000: Dec. 6

• 18,000: Dec. 2
• 17,000: Nov. 28
• 16,000: Nov. 24
• 15,000: Nov. 20
• 14,000: Nov. 16
• 13,000: Nov. 11
• 12,000: Nov. 5
• 11,000: Oct. 29
• 10,000: Oct. 20
• 9,000: Oct. 6
• 8,000: Sept. 22
• 7,000: Sept. 11
• 6,000: Sept. 2
• 5,000: Aug. 23
• 4,000: Aug. 10
• 3,000: July 28
• 2,000: July 12
• 1,000: June 10
• 1: March 8