KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — As Knox County hits repeated high COVID-19 case counts, data from the Tennessee Department of Health indicates the increase is driven in large part by children and teenagers.
As of Sunday, more than half of total cases reported in the county over the previous week were for people ages 11-20. For the same time period statewide, people in that age group account for only 17.3 percent of new cases.
Monday, Knox Co. had the second highest number of new cases reported since July. Sunday, it hit an all-time record high of 224 new cases of the coronavirus.
The increases come just over one virus incubation period since the start of classes at the University of Tennessee, which reported 584 active cases in students Sunday.
The number of active cases in students more than doubled in less than a week.
The county-wide increase is likely driven by UT as Knox County Schools reported only 34 active cases in students Monday.
UT said nearly 2,000 students were in isolation or quarantine Monday, around a third of those students reported virus symptoms.