The coronavirus case surge on the Island continued without letup Monday, with the Island boards of health reporting 31 new cases from over the weekend.

On Tuesday the surging numbers settled down somewhat, with the Island boards of health reporting six new cases. Three were from the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital, and three were from Test MV, the free testing site at the regional high school.

Also Tuesday one symptomatically positive case was reported (meaning a patient was diagnosed by a doctor as having Covid without a  positive test).

As of Tuesday there were 245 total confirmed cases on the Island. No one was hospitalized with the virus.

The Vineyard has been experiencing a steady surge in cases for two straight weeks, as numbers spike daily and weekly, and public health officials work around the clock to track the growing community spread of the virus. Expanded testing is back too, as demand for Covid tests surges alongside new cases.

The hospital has mobilized its readiness plans, and among other things is now reporting daily case counts from its testing site which tests symptomatic patients. Case counts from TestMV, the free testing site at the regional high school, are reported Monday through Friday by the Island boards of health.

In a daily case update Monday, the Island boards of health reported that 31 new patients had tested positive for the virus over the weekend. Twelve of the cases were reported on Saturday, three on Sunday and 16 reported on Monday, according to an email from Tisbury health agent Maura Valley.  

Also Monday a spokesman for TestMV said the site would expand its schedule, adding back Tuesdays and Thursdays as testing days due to increased demand. The testing site had cut back to three days a week at the onset of fall.

Tuesdays and Thursdays will be open for the same hours, but will be available by online registration only. On the other three days of the week, patients can schedule an appointment through the IHC call center as well as online. The only way to make an appointment for a minor is through the call center.

“Clearly the numbers are climbing,” said Mary Breslauer, a spokesman for TestMV and Island Health Care. “Drive-through, easily accessible testing is something we need to have on the Island.”

The 31 cases over the weekend come after a week in which the Island saw more than 60 new positive coronavirus tests — the most since the pandemic began. As of last Friday, health agents reported in an expanded weekly update that there were 55 active cases on the Island. 

According to daily updates Monday from the hospital and the boards of health, 23 of the 31 cases were reported by the hospital and five were reported at TestMV. The Gazette has asked for further clarification on the additional three cases reported Monday afternoon. 

The hospital and the boards of health have been releasing case totals at different times of day and on different days of the week, often causing discrepancies in total and daily case numbers. In an email Monday, Ms. Valley said that both the hospital and the health agents would release daily case updates that are accurate as of 3 p.m. 

Coming in the runup to Thanksgiving week, the unabated case surge has prompted renewed calls for vigilance among public health officials, including masks, social distancing and some rollbacks of opening in public buildings. Island public schools, which were in the throes of returning to in-person learning across all grades, have put those plans on hold for now.

Updated to include additional information from TestMV and additional cases reported by the boards of health Monday and Tuesday.