Warren County is inching closer to falling below the state threshold for being declared a COVID-19 hot spot.

Thursday, the Mississippi State Department of Health announced 11 new cases of the virus in Warren County. With that report, the county has reported 133 cases through Feb. 11, compared to the record pace set in January, when 509 cases were reported in the first 11 days of the month.

As for the state thresholds for being considered a hot spot, Warren County has reported 219 cases over the past 14 days, which also equates to an average of 449.02 cases per 100,000 residents. The state considers any county that has more than 200 cases over a 14-day period or an average of more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents a virus hot spot.

If Warren County reports 17 or fewer new cases Friday, it will completely fall below both thresholds for the first time since Dec. 3.

The declining number of new cases also comes at a time when the number of vaccinations administered in the county is quickly increasing.

Last week, a drive-thru vaccination site at the former Vicksburg Mall administered nearly 1,200 vaccinations. So far this week, the site has administered more than 800 shots. And, the site, which is managed by the Mississippi State Department of Health, with the support of the Warren County Emergency Management Agency and the Mississippi Air National Guard, will continue to administer vaccinations to those with appointments through at least the first week of March.

In addition, actions taken by local lawmakers this week, saw both the city and the county extend their COVID-19 civil emergency orders, which both include mask mandates.

The city’s orders were extended through April 1, while the county’s order was extended to March 1.