Five residents have died and several have been infected in a COVID-19 cluster at Sunny Acres Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Chelmsford, according to state health data.
“Unfortunately, it has proved impossible to keep this rapidly spreading and highly contagious virus out of this center,” wrote Sunny Acres Administrator Jeff Schwartz in a Wednesday update posted online.
Routine testing conducted last month showed “several residents” tested positive for the virus, according to Schwartz.
Data from the state weekly public health report show five resident deaths and more than 30 infections including residents and staff.
The Chelmsford Board of Health did not respond respond to the Herald’s requests for comment, but Boston 25 News reported 47 residents and 17 staff were infected.
“This center has been working closely with the State Department of Public Heath, The Chelmsford Board of Health and has been receiving support from infection control specialists to bring this current virus cluster under control in the center,” said Schwartz.
He said many residents have moved past their 14-day isolation period and are “on the road to recovery.”
According to the Wednesday update from Schwartz, there had not been a single COVID-19 case at Sunny Acres in the past 15 weeks before this outbreak and the center has conducted approximately 1,600 tests on staff and residents during that period.
Word of the outbreak spread quickly online with people expressing concerns about their loved ones.
A spokeswoman for the Executive Office of Health and Human Services said the state has been monitoring the outbreak and deployed a rapid response team to Sunny Acres on Oct. 9 to provide staffing and infection control. That team is still deployed.
The Department of Public Health has performed two infection control surveys at Sunny Acres, which are being reviewed and finalized for public posting.
Chelmsford is currently in the red zone on the state coronavirus map with 88 positive tests in the last two weeks and an average daily incidence rate of nearly 14 cases per 100,000 residents.
Sunny Acres, located at 254 Billerica Road in Chelmsford, has been in operation for 72 years offering rehabilitation, social services, memory care, hospice care and respite care, according to its website.
There are 93 licensed beds at the center, according to state health data.
Of the total coronavirus death toll in Massachusetts, which stands at 9,830 as of Friday, 6,323 deaths have been reported in long-term care facilities.
Starting Monday, Chelmsford will revert back to step one of phase three of the state’s reopening plan, the town announced.
That means indoor theaters, roller skating rinks, trampoline parks, obstacle courses, laser tag and escape rooms cannot be open.
Other business must reduce capacity and outdoor gatherings will be limited to 50 people.
