Over a one-week period in the Belgrade, Brooten and Elrosa zip code areas between March 3 and March 9, the number of new COVID-19 cases is a five. This data was released on March 10 by the Minnesota Department of Health in its weekly zip code report. This comes a week after the weekly new case count total was one for the 4,300-plus men, women and children living in the zip code areas of 56312, 56316 and 56325.

Belgrade 56312 - 3 new cases (1 last week)

Brooten 56316 - 2 new cases (none last week)

Elrosa 56325 - no new cases (none last week)

At Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa school district, the COVID-19 dashboard dropped back to all zeroes on March 9. The Jaguar Kids Connection day care and preschool has now gone over six weeks without a COVID-19 case among the students or staff.

Area COVID-19 weekly case count increases:

Willmar - 7 new cases (26 last week)

Benson - 1 new case (2 last week)

Clara City - 1 new case (2 last week)

Hancock - 1 new case (none last week)

Kandiyohi - 1 new case (1 last week)

Kerkhoven - 1 new case (none last week or the week before)

Maynard - 3 new cases (1 last week)

Morris - 6 new cases (1 last week)

Murdock - no new cases (1 last week)

New London - no new cases (3 last week)

Pennock - no new cases (1 last week)

Raymond - 1 new case (none last week)

Spicer - 3 new cases (3 last week)

Sunburg - 1 new case (none last week)

Alexandria - 18 new cases (34 last week)

Glenwood - 27 new cases (11 last week)

Melrose - 9 new cases (3 last week)

Osakis - 1 new case (3 last week)

Paynesville - 8 new cases (none last week)

Sauk Centre - 6 new cases (11 last week)

Starbuck - 12 new cases (4 last week)

Villard - 3 new cases (none last week).

We still have no explanation from the Minnesota Department of Health or from Governor Walz on how our COVID-19 cases can plummet in the Land of Rocks and Cows when we are living without widespread masking or widespread use of jab passports at businesses or for entry for school children into school buildings. Also, no explanation has been provided how the JKC day care can go six weeks without a single COVID-19 case when its student population is almost completely un-jabbed.

Mum's the word. From the point of view of wanting facts, it appears to be this big mystery that will never be explained by those whose paychecks are funded by taxpayers.