The entrance to SCI Dallas is seen in a file photo. State data posted Wednesday and Thursday show more than half of the record 534 new COVID-19 cases reported Thursday were in a single ZIP code, the Dallas code of 18612. A state Department of Health spokesperson suggested the surge is the result of new cases at the prison.

The entrance to SCI Dallas is seen in a file photo. State data posted Wednesday and Thursday show more than half of the record 534 new COVID-19 cases reported Thursday were in a single ZIP code, the Dallas code of 18612. A state Department of Health spokesperson suggested the surge is the result of new cases at the prison.

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State data posted Wednesday and Thursday show more than half of the record 534 new COVID-19 cases reported Thursday were in a single ZIP code, the Dallas code of 18612.

A state Department of Health spokesperson suggested the surge is the result of new cases at SCI Dallas.

No other ZIP code comes close. The next highest increase from Wednesday to Thursday was in the Hazleton code of 18201, with 42 new cases, followed by 26 new cases in the Wilkes-Barre code of 18702.

On Wednesday, the state reported a total of 1,059 cases for the Dallas code since the pandemic reached the county. On Thursday it reported 1,350, for a total of 291 new cases in a single day. On the other side of the ledger, the state reported a total of 4,860 negative test results on Wednesday and 5,135 negatives on Thursday, for an increase of 274. That means more tests came back positive than negative.

The Times Leader emailed the Department of Health seeking an explanation for such a dramatic surge in a single ZIP code. A spokesperson responded “There is a large, active outbreak within a congregate setting within that zip code, which would help account for the increase in cases,” and provided a link to an interactive presentation on COVID-19 at the State Correctional Institutions.

The link provides the number of active COVID-19 cases for each facility. For SCI Dallas, the data shows 680 “active inmates positive” and 20 “active staff positive.” The total number of inmate positives in all state facilities was 3,503, which would mean the Dallas location accounts for more than 19 percent of all cases throughout the state system.

With Thursday’s report the death count in Luzerne County now stands at 395 since the pandemic began, and the total number of confirmed cases is 14,417.

Neighboring Lackawanna County has had 7,021 cases and 255 deaths; Monroe County has had 4,983 cases and 181 deaths.

The Department of Health confirmed that there were 9,966 additional positive cases of COVID-19 across Pennsylvania, bringing the statewide total to 529,335.

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Staff writer Bill O’Boyle contributed to this report.

Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish