FARGO, N.D (KFGO) – As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise in Cass County, Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney issued a plea to take social distancing seriously, in particular, younger people who make up the majority of the confirmed cases locally.

Mahoney said 55% of the positive tests in Cass County are those under the age of 40. “We’re bunching, we’re crowding, we need to separate from each other,” he said.

Fargo/Cass County Public Health Director Desi Fleming said use common sense and practice the guideline used by health care professionals. It’s called universal precautions which means everybody is considered infectious even though their status is not known. “We’re taught that so we’re calm and deliberate in our actions.”

As of Wednesday, there were 147 positive cases of COVID-19 statewide, up 21 from the previous day. There are 37 cases in Cass County.