For the entire month of August and until Thursday, September 3, the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District reported over 1,600 estimated active cases of COVID-19.
On Friday, September 4, the number dropped by hundreds of cases, causing confusion among the local community.
"I just could not think of anything that would make it drop so dramatically," said resident Linda Dieffenbach.
On Thursday, September 3, data from McLennan county showed 1,927 estimated active cases. The next day, it dropped to 657.
Kelly Craine with the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District says in the last week of June, they started working with the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to help with contact tracing.
After completing an audit, the health district learned cases that were no longer active were not taken off the estimated active case count.
"What we discovered is that there was a whole group that we turned over that we did not calculate into that number. So this really was an update and revision to make sure the numbers were accurate," said Craine.
She says it's important for the health department to continue running audits to ensure the data is accurate.
"It's something we need to do regularly when we are dealing with so many numbers and when we are dealing with something that has been going on for so long. We need to stop, audit ourselves and make sure that we are providing the correct number and most accurate information," said Craine.
Information Linda Dieffenbach says she needs during these uncertain times.
"I rely on them to decide how much risk I am taking on when I decide what I am going to do or if I am staying home," she said.
Nevertheless, Craine says these numbers mean good news and hopes the community will continue taking serious precautions.
" We have significantly dropped our number of daily cases which is so important. It means it is not spreading as much," said Craine.
