VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Leaders at the Department of Health in Volusia County are hopeful that the county could soon be on the other side of the omicron surge.

Officials with the Volusia DOH said that last week's state reports showed about 13,000 positive cases per 100,000 people — which put the county well into the high-transmission category. However this week, that number has dropped down to 11,000 positive cases. DOH officials say that is very encouraging and indicate that the peak could be on its way out.

“This is a good sign,” said Ethan Johnson, assistant county Health Department director in Volusia County.  “It's not to say that it's over yet, so individuals who have symptoms or COVID-like symptoms should still stay home.

"But it is good news that it appears here in Volusia County that we've reached that peak and the decline in cases will likely be occurring just as rapidly as the incline did.”

Johnson said the high demand for testing has slightly decreased over the past week. He also noted that about 1,500 people get vaccinated in Volusia County every week — leading to about 65% of the eligible population in the county now being vaccinated.