As of March 30, 2020, there are 13 positive COVID-19 test results for St. Lawrence County, according to St. Lawrence County Public Health officials.

Five of those cases are SUNY Potsdam students, according to a statement on the college’s website.

The number of positive cases is expected to increase as testing ramps up and results return. The number of cases has more than doubled since Friday, when there were 6 confirmed cases.

St. Lawrence County now has community spread of COVID-19. Current cases have been identified from Massena, North Lawrence, Ogdensburg, Potsdam, and St. Regis Falls.

SUNY Potsdam’s Student Health Services was been notified that five of the college’s residential students have confirmed cases of COVID-19. To respect the privacy of the individuals, they will remain anonymous.

The students reportedly arrived on campus between March 14 and March 20.

SUNY Potsdam says they have put in place precautionary measures to ensure social distancing. As a result, the students had already been in quarantine.

“The affected students have already been placed in single bedrooms with single bathrooms to practice self-isolation, the statement said. “They will remain in isolation until cleared by the St. Lawrence County Public Health Department.”

“As a reminder, all approved residential students who have recently traveled to campus from areas with a high incidence of COVID-19 have been required to complete a 14-day self-quarantine period. They all were given tests by Student Health Services, in conjunction with the Public Health Department,” said SUNY Potsdam.

Of those who tested positive, four individuals were completely asymptomatic and one had mild cold symptoms, the college said.

The St. Lawrence County Public Health Department will notify students, faculty and staff who may have been exposed to the individuals who have tested positive.

According to the CDC, "community spread" means officials cannot determine how or where people are being infected with the disease.

“We need to focus on slowing the community spread,” public health said in a Friday news release.

All confirmed cases are people living in St. Lawrence County and they are currently in mandatory isolation at home.

If you have recently returned from travel and have questions on whether you should self-isolate, you should contact the public health department at: 315-244-4542.

People with additional questions regarding COVID-19 can contact the St. Lawrence County COVID-19 Call Center at 315-229-3970 or email eoccallcenter@stlawco.org. The COVID-19 Call Center is open daily between 8am and 4pm at this time.

The St. Lawrence County Public Health Department also has updated information on its website at www.stlawco.org/departments/publichealth.