Arkansas records second child death of flu season as virus tapers off

Arkansas health officials recorded a second child death, as the current flu season appears to be tapering off, according to a weekly influenza report issued Tuesday.

Health officials said five adults died this past week, bringing the season’s flu-death total to 106, up from 100 the previous week. The Health Department recorded a previous child death since it began tracking this year’s flu in September.

Of those deaths, 71 percent of people didn’t get a flu shot or had no vaccination history, the department said.

Health officials downgraded the spread of the flu throughout Arkansas to “local,” a designation for when the influenza is reported in single parts of the state.

Officials noted the majority of cases were in Pulaski, Crittenden, White, Craighead, Garland, Independence, and Johnson counties.

Tuesday’s report also shows a steady decline in reported flu cases from past weeks.

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