Lincoln – A central Nebraska county with a major meatpacking plant and a lot of nursing homes and manufacturing facilities now has more COVID-19 cases than any other county in the state, according to new public health data.

Hall County had 278 residents with the coronavirus as of last Wednesday, surpassing the 263 known cases Douglas County, which has nearly nine times as many residents.

Hall County, which includes Grand Island, has seen a spike in cases at the JBS USA meatpacking plant, the McCain Foods frozen appetizer factory, nursing homes and a health clinic.

Last week, the farm equipment manufacturer Case New Holland temporarily halted production to protect line workers who work in close proximity.

“Grand Island’s a manufacturing town, so it’s not an easy place to just work from home,” Gov. Pete Ricketts said last Thursday.

The actual number of Hall County cases is likely much higher than what’s reported because the county has a “very limited” number of tests available, said Central District Health Department Director Teresa Anderson. The Nebraska National Guard helped test people last week, and Ricketts said members will continue that work this weekend.

Last week, 45 Grand Island doctors sent an open letter to Ricketts urging him to impose tougher social distancing restrictions to encourage people to stay home.

“COVID-19’s arrival has been much swifter than we ever imagined,” the doctors wrote in the letter, which was published in the Omaha World-Herald.

Ricketts has repeatedly said he won’t issue a formal stay-home order as most other governors has done, but he has put in place a statewide health directive that bans public gatherings of more than 10 people and requires restaurants and bars to close their dining areas. He has defended the plan, arguing that it has worked as intended because all of the state’s hospitals are still well below their capacity.

“We’re not overwhelming the health care system,” Ricketts said.

Ricketts said the state is working to help the city’s manufacturers develop safety plans. He noted that JBS USA has installed plastic dividers at work stations and in its lunchroom, and is taking the temperature of everyone who enters the facility. Workers are also wearing masks and washing their hands often, he said. The plant didn’t close because it is considered an essential food processor.

Despite the surge in cases in Grand Island, the region’s major hospital is successfully managing the influx of patients with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, said Dr. Gary Anthone, Nebraska’s chief medical officer.

Anthone said CHI St. Francis is Grand Island had 18 COVID-19 patients as of Thursday. Twelve of those patients were in the hospital’s intensive care unit, down from 16 on Wednesday, he said.

Anthone said that Mary Lanning Hospital in Hastings, about 25 miles south of Grand Island, had 10 COVID-19 patients as of Thursday morning.

“Those are the hot spots in the state right now,” Anthone said.