As the holidays approach, public health officials and doctors say they anticipate a fresh coronavirus surge after Thanksgiving if people don’t shelter in place. Their message to Rockfordians and residents of northern Illinois, is to stay home - and wear a mask if outside travel is necessary.  

Dr. James Cole, surgeon-in-chief at SwedishAmerican, discussed the alarming spike in COVID-19 cases he is seeing now – and that he expects to see after the holidays, and what impact that may have on the readiness of the hospital systems and healthcare workers. 

The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday reported 15,415 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in the state, including 27 additional deaths. 

As of Friday afternoon, IDPH reported a total of 551,957 cases since the pandemic began, including 10,504 deaths. Winnebago County has recorded a total of 14,421 cases and 206 deaths.  

Rockford Register Star reporter Andrea Watson has more of this story on our website at https://www.rrstar.com/news/20201113/winnebago-county-health-experts-fear-covid-19-surge-tied-to-holidays