Georgia colleges see rise in COVID-19 cases, students urged to get tested frequently

ATLANTA — As campuses reopen, we’re seeing what we all expected: a spike in COVID-19 cases.

At Georgia’s Tech campus, positive cases have more than doubled in just over a week and other colleges in Georgia are also reporting more cases.

Georgia Tech’s president told Channel 2 Action News they’re doing everything they can to keep the campus open.

Overall, in the state, experts say cases are trending in the right direction.

On Tech’s campus, some students are bracing for a possible shutdown, as coronavirus cases pile up. More than 60 new cases over the weekend, pushing the total since March to over 700.

International students feel especially out on a limb if the campus is forced to close again.

“Our classes, taking them online, is already hard enough,” said international student Leopold Garcia.

[Coronavirus: How many cases are at U.S. colleges? Check out this map]

Angel Cabrera, Tech’s president says he needs the diligence and commitment from students to stop the spread of the virus. He’s urging every student to get tested each week. The college has capacity to collect 2,000 samples a day.

“Testing is really the radar that allows us to understand the spread of infection,” Cabrera said.

He also cautioned against large parties. A campus fraternity is now in lockdown after many members contracted COVID-19.

An off-campus block party near University of North Georgia in Dahlonega sparked fears of a major outbreak last month.

[Viral video shows huge gathering of students near Georgia university campus]

But reports show only around 170 new cases in August on UNG’s three major campuses.

At the University of Georgia, reports show 35 new COVID-19 cases, that’s on top of the nearly 500 reported from March to early August.

Georgia College in Milledgeville reported 570 COVID-19 cases, since mid-June.

Both UGA and Tech are telling students frequent testing is the best way to get a handle on the virus.

Georgia COVID-19 cases are trending in the right direction, experts say August started with logging more than 3,500 new cases a day. That number has dropped to now just over 2,100 daily new cases in Georgia at month’s end.

Cox Media Group