There was an uptick in the number of new COVID-19 cases during past week in the tri-county area of Gloucester, Mathews, and Middlesex, according to data from the Virginia Department of Health.

Gloucester County recorded 198 new cases from last Wednesday to this Wednesday, for a total of 3,304 cases since the pandemic began, while Middlesex County had 68 new cases, for a total of 783. Mathews County added 29 cases, for a total of 786.

Hospitalizations were up, as well, with Gloucester seeing five people hospitalized, bringing its total to 82 since last March, while Mathews and Middlesex each had two new hospitalizations, for totals of 28 and 29, respectively.

There was one COVID-related death in each county during the past week, bringing the total number of people who have lost their lives to the pandemic during the past year-and-a-half to: Gloucester, 54; Mathews, 15; and Middlesex, 24.

The story was the same across the entirety of the Three Rivers Health District, with 68...