Health

The dispatcher said she wasn't informed until later that she had worked in close proximity to someone who had a family member who tested positive for COVID-19.

The governor read from a Hopkins County Health Department document to paint a grim picture of what can happen when Kentuckians don't practice social distancing.

One of the cases is reportedly a patient at Western State Hospital in Hopkinsville.

“Every crowd and gathering is an opportunity for the coronavirus to spread," the governor said.

The county's number of confirmed cases climbed from two to 26 in five days.

Students who have volunteered to help with care in Kentucky include 342 medical students, 210 nursing students, 43 pharmacy students and 53 others.

There were 42 newly identified COVID-19 cases and two deaths from the disease.

The two newly identified cases are women, ages 54 and 62.

Gov. Andy Beshear and Health Commissioner Steven Stack said over the weekend that the critical measure in the next two weeks is social distancing to prevent spread of the virus.

Local, state and federal health officials continue to stress the importance of social distancing.

A gathering of hundreds of young people in Louisville Friday night and funerals open to more than immediate families are examples of activities that will result in more deaths, the governor said.

Beshear said approximately 64 Kentuckians are known to have recovered from the virus so far.