RICHMOND – The number of Ray County COVID-19 cases and the death toll continue to mount. The number of cases reported Aug. 5 by the Ray County Health Department stood at 1,831 versus 1,759 cases July 29, an increase of 72 or 4.1% in one week. The number of deaths rose to 34, up by two in the same one-week period. The latest federal guidelines call for most people, including those vaccinated fully, to wear masks indoors. People vaccinated fully are far less likely to become ill, but they can become infected and infect others. “High viral loads suggest an increased risk of transmission and raised concern that, unlike with other variants, vaccinated people infected with Delta can transmit the virus,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated July 30. The Delta variant is more transmissible and deadlier the the original virus and affects people at younger ages.