Officials: Covid surge at Pitt 'endangering our campus and surrounding communities'

The University of Pittsburgh is “sounding the alarm” and adjusting its testing strategy amid a surge in covid-19 cases.

The university reported 48 new infections on the Pittsburgh campus Tuesday, including 46 students and two employees. Twenty-eight of the student cases were recorded Friday alone — the highest single-day case count since the beginning of the pandemic, according to Pitt’s Covid-19 Medical Response Office.

Two students tested positive at Pitt-Bradford since Friday, along with four students at Pitt-Johnstown.

In a message to students, officials said the Pittsburgh campus’ case levels are comparable to a spike in November, with a five-day moving average of 12.2 cases per day.

“But the way covid-19 is spreading now looks different than it did in the fall,” the message reads. “Most of the cases we’re seeing are in small pockets throughout multiple residence halls. Contact tracing has not revealed clear connections between clusters, though we suspect off-campus spread.”

“This makes it very difficult to control the spread,” the message says.

A university spokesperson said the vast majority of cases among students are symptomatic — though none are hospitalized “to the best of our knowledge.” There are 94 students in isolation housing, according to Pitt’s online data dashboard.

The surge in cases prompted the university to change its testing strategy, officials said. While Pitt has conducted “surveillance testing” since the beginning of the academic year — testing students at random regardless of the presence of symptoms, to monitor asymptomatic spread — response rates have been decreasing.

Beginning next week, the Pittsburgh campus will open testing to any asymptomatic student, “no questions asked.”

“If you feel you may have been exposed, have not been following mitigation measures or shelter-in-place protocols or simply want to know if you have covid-19, please schedule a time to come for testing.”

The university also will offer “focused testing” in response to the spike in cases, by invitation.

“We are sounding the alarm,” the CMRO message reads. “Current spread is endangering our campus and surrounding communities.”

The university has reported rising infection levels for the past few weeks. Last Friday, Pitt reported 54 cases over the course of three days, saying students have been infected across at least 13 residence halls. Officials further cited the concern of the presence of the B117 covid variant, the variant first identified in the United Kingdom, at the Pittsburgh campus.

The campus enacted shelter-in-place restrictions last Wednesday. Under those restrictions, students are asked only to leave their rooms or apartments to attend classes, pick up food, shop for essentials or other necessary activities. Spokesman Kevin Zwick said the CMRO will determine when and if to end the shelter-in-place period. An end-of-term shelter-in-place had been previously scheduled to start April 16, so it is possible the Pittsburgh campus could continue its highest level of restrictions through the end of the spring semester, he said.