COVID-19 Case Counts for Craig, Prince of Wales Island, and the Prince of Wales-HyderCensus Area.
There has been some confusion lately caused by information collected and reported on where COVID-19 cases are located in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census area. Generally, this is caused
because people that live outside of organized communities are asked by public health officials to provide information about what community they live in. It is common on Prince of Wales for
residents to report that they live in the closest community to them, even if they are not within those city or community limits.
The State of Alaska reports positive COVID-19 cases by the area that the person lists as their
residence and they rely on the reported information from the healthcare provider and the patient to determine that residency. In addition, the state will not specify what community a person lives in unless that community has a population greater than 1,000 people. All other cases are reported within the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census area.
The Prince of Wales-Hyder Census area includes Coffman Cove, Craig, Edna Bay, Hollis Census Designated Place (CDP), Hydaburg, Hyder CDP, Kake, Kasaan, Klawock, Metlakatla CDP, Naukati Bay CDP, Point Baker CDP, Port Alexander, Port Protection CDP, Thorne Bay, Whale Pass CDP and a handful of residents that do not fall in any of the other listed areas. It is important to note that Hyder, Kake, Metlakatla, and Port Alexander are included in the census area and those cases will be reported as part of the Prince of Wales-Hyder area count. On Prince of Wales Island, Craig is the only community that the state will specifically name when reporting cases. In the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area the state also reports Metlakatla cases.
The City of Craig will work with local healthcare providers and public health to provide data to the public showing how many cases are in Craig (residents or visitors within the Craig city limits), how many cases are on Prince of Wales, and how many cases are in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area. Please keep in mind that three of the four communities that are in the census area but not part of Prince of Wales Island are under the 1,000-person population threshold (Hyder, Kake, Metlakatla, and Port Alexander) and are not traditionally considered “Prince of Wales”. This may result in some errors in the total number of cases between just Prince of Wales and the case count for the overall census area.
State Department of Health and Social Services staff are working with the best information that they have available when they put together the statewide data, but given the unique
circumstances on Prince of Wales and the larger census area, they do not always have the
information to report these numbers correctly. Local public health nurses will continue to work with the state to iron out these numbers as the need arises.
If you are interested in data that more accurately reflects Prince of Wales, and Craig in particular you can check in to the city’s Facebook page (@CityofCraigAlaska) or web page
(www.craigak.com). You can also call in to the toll-free Prince of Wales COVID-19 Hotline at 1-888-894-1321. The hotline is updated daily (Monday through Friday) with current information on case counts.
If you have other questions regarding Craig’s COVID-19 response or case counts please call the Craig Public Information Officer (Brian Templin) at 907-826-3275.
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