UPDATED First 'Summit' Coronavirus Case Was Actually In Madison

SUMMIT, NJ --

[CORRECTION: The city of Summit sent out notice on March 17 that they had received erroneous information, and the patient cited below is actually a resident of Madison, NJ. The authorities are notifying his contacts and tracing his steps. Summit did not have any known cases as of Tuesday morning.

According to the spokesperson: "The Westfield Regional Health Department has issued a correction to its March 15 reporting of the residence of a recently diagnosed age 50+ male patient with the COVID-19 coronavirus. On further investigation, the primary residence of the patient has been identified as Madison, NJ, not Summit, NJ. This was a reporting error only. All contact tracing and self-quarantine protocols focused on Madison, NJ as the location of the patient’s residence."

The city said there is a Berkeley Heights man with the virus who is currently being treated at Overlook Medical Center in Summit.]

An alert from the city of Summit on Monday said, "Westfield Regional Health Department confirms case of COVID-19 virus in Summit. Patient is male age 50+ and self-isolating since symptoms began last week w/ very limited public contact. Extremely important to practice social distancing and good hygiene."

Few details were available late on Sunday. Several surrounding towns reported their first confirmed cases over the weekend, such as Westfield and Maplewood.

Earlier on Sunday, Summit had posted a video and notices on the city website about promoting social distancing. In the video, Mayor Nora Radest gave advice she said might sound "extreme."

"Do not schedule playdates, parties, sleepovers, or visits with other families," she said. Read more on that here.

The Summit public schools are closed for a month.

New Jersey's governor said Sunday that at least 98 people had been confirmed with the virus, an increase of 31 over the day before.

Experts say that the novel coronavirus, because it's new, is more lethal and harder to treat than the flu.

Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that include the common cold as well as much more serious diseases. The strain that emerged in China in late 2019, now called COVID-19, is related to others that have caused serious outbreaks in recent years, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was on Jan. 21.

To keep up with the latest, get breaking news in Summit and statewide signing up for free Patch breaking news alerts and daily newsletters. Got a Summit news tip or want to reach out? Email [email protected].