Matt Piper | Appleton Post-Crescent

Wisconsin's confirmed cases of coronavirus increased by eight Saturday, including four new cases in Milwaukee County.

Other new cases announced by the Department of Health Services include the first in Winnebago County, two more in Waukesha County and another in Dane County.

At a late-night press conference Saturday, Milwaukee Health Commissioner Jeanette Kowalik said the case of a sick Milwaukee Public Schools employee is expected to be the state's 28th case and Milwaukee County's seventh. Test results for that case have not returned from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention but officials are confident the results will be positive.

Saturday's update comes after a week in which the reality of the COVID-19 pandemic set in many places around the U.S., including Wisconsin.

Friday, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency, and Gov. Tony Evers announced that all K-12 schools will close next Wednesday until at least April 6.

Global confirmed cases had increased to 150,000 as of midday Saturday, according to a live dashboard maintained by Johns Hopkins University. Deaths neared 5,800.

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As of Saturday afternoon, Wisconsin health officials had yet to announce any confirmed cases they couldn't tie to another known carrier, or travel to places where the virus is known to be spreading widely.

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DHS didn't immediately respond to a request for a clarification about whether any of the new confirmed cases involved the first evidence of spread throughout the community.

Confirmed cases in Wisconsin included six each in Milwaukee, Fond du Lac and Dane counties, three in Sheboygan and Waukesha counties and one each in Winnebago, Racine and Pierce counties.

The state's tally of negative tests increased Saturday from 169 to 246.

The first Wisconsin resident to become ill with COVID-19 — a Dane County resident —who immediately went to the hospital after a flight from China — made a full recovery.

Symptoms of the virus include cough, shortness of breath and fever. If you experience those symptoms and suspect you may have COVID-19, call your doctor before coming into a clinic to be tested.

There's no vaccine for the new coronavirus, so health officials have stressed the importance of ensuring that the health care system isn't overrun by too many people becoming ill at once.

Lifestyle changes are key to ensuring that doesn't happen.

Everybody should regularly and thoroughly wash their hands and disinfect surfaces. People should avoid large gatherings where they won't be able to distance themselves at least six feet from other people. And people over 60, or those with compromised immune systems, should stay home as much as possible.

Travel is strongly discouraged if your destinations include places with documented community spread. Wisconsin officials ask recent visitors to those places to quarantine themselves for 14 days and watch for symptoms.