Baker County’s COVID-19 cases continue to show up in little clusters, which is obviously better, Nancy Staten said, than big clusters.

But although Baker County’s total of 24 cases is lower than in 28 of Oregon’s 35 other counties, Staten, administrator for the county’s health department, discourages residents from relaxing their diligence in wearing face masks, social distancing and washing their hands frequently.

“We’re not immune,” Staten said on Monday afternoon. “I don’t want people in our community to think we are.”

Of Baker County’s 24 cases, 23 have been reported since June 30.

The most cases announced in a single day has been three, the total for July 7 and for July 25. No one has died from the virus in the county, and no one was hospitalized as of Monday afternoon.

A press release from the county on Saturday announced four new cases, but Staten said one of those cases was reported late Friday, after the press statement had been released.

Staten said that county officials, in investigating each of the positive cases and in interviewing people who might have been in close contact with an infected person, have found a commonality.

Each infected person had been in close contact with another person who previously tested positive, she said.

(Close contact is defined as being closer than 6 feet to another person for at least 15 minutes, Staten said.)

These cases of what’s known as “community spread” don’t involve one large event, workplace or group housing such as an assisted living facility, Staten said.

Rather, the infections are resulting from smaller “social gatherings.”

The largest number of cases connected to a single group involves five U.S. Forest Service employees, two of whom shared a home and three others who are friends and often visited the house.

Investigators can’t always be completely certain about the encounter that resulted in one person infecting another, Staten said.

But they have high confidence in most cases based on interviews with people who are infected.

In some cases, Staten said, the person who tested positive alerted friends or family even before the county’s contact tracer had called, so those people were expecting a phone call.

Staten said people have in almost every case been very cooperative with the county, both those who tested positive and those who were called by a contact tracer.

“I think people want to do the right thing to protect their family and the community,” she said. “I think that’s reassuring.”

Staten encourages residents, before agreeing to attend an event that might bring them in close contact with someone — particularly an indoor event, where the risk of transmission is greater — to ask some simple questions.

These include whether the person, or any other people attending the party, might have traveled outside the county or state recently.

And she strongly urges people not to attend an event with someone who has had symptoms consistent with COVID-19, such as a fever, cough or difficulty breathing.

Staten said the county’s investigations have shown that many people who are the likely source of an infection did have symptoms, so these precautionary questions can give a person good reason to avoid a particular gathering.

She cautions, however, that making a decision solely on whether a person has had symptoms is not foolproof, since some people who are infected never show symptoms.

“There’s still a risk, regardless,” of being in close contact with someone, Staten said.

That’s why it’s important, regardless of the circumstances, to follow other precautions such as wearing a mask and maintaining a distance, she said.

Staten said that although Baker County has avoided the large outbreaks that have other nearby counties, including Union, Malheur and Umatilla, the local rate of transmission has increased over the past few weeks.

“We’re seeing a smaller number of cases than many counties, but we do not want an outbreak,” she said.

Staten noted that if county residents are responsible and adhere to precautions they not only protect themselves and their families, but they also can help local businesses that would suffer if case numbers climb, potentially leading to business restrictions similar to those in place during much of the spring.