Monday’s update on the state’s COVID-19 pandemic by state health officials offered a glimmer of hope that numbers on both the local level and state level may be leveling off or maybe even declining.

After setting a one-day record Saturday when 56 new cases were confirmed in Warren County, Sunday’s report showed just four new cases, while Monday’s report showed just two new cases. While these low numbers could be more reflective of lower numbers early in the week as testing results come in, the lower numbers are a good sign.

Since the first Monday in June, Warren County has seen an average of seven new cases reported each Monday, with two of those Mondays showing no new cases. The highest figure reported on a Monday was on June 22, when 51 were reported, but that number was discounted because it showed cases confirmed over a five-day period after the state’s website experienced technical issues.

With that number and date discounted, the largest number of cases reported on a Monday was July 20, when 37 cases were reported.

Over the past 14 days, Warren County has reported 239 new cases or a ratio of 490 cases per 100,000 residents.

Overall, Warren County has tallied 1,095 cases of COVID-19 since the first local case was reported on March 29. The county has also recorded 33 virus-related deaths, the last one coming Sunday.

As for the state, Monday’s report was one of the lowest numbers recently, with just 495 new cases reported statewide and 16 new deaths. One of those deaths was reported in Issaquena County. Since the first case was reported in Mississippi on March 11, the state has reported 67,649 cases and 1,912 deaths.