The Flathead City-County Health Department has discovered evidence of community spread of COVID-19 in Flathead County, according to a press release Friday morning.

Within the last few days, five cases have been identified that “cannot be directly traced back to a known exposure with a positive case or related to travel,” the health department said.

As of Friday morning, there are eight active cases of COVID-19 in Flathead County residents and one active case of a non-resident being monitored in Flathead County. According to the press release, all close contacts of the cases have been notified.

The Governor’s COVID-19 Task Force reported four of the total eight cases in Flathead County Thursday morning, but on Friday, no new cases were reported. The task force announces new cases statewide every morning at 10 a.m.

Due to the identification of community transmission, and to reduce the spread of the virus, Flathead County health officials encourage everyone to practice social distancing, frequent hand-washing, wearing a mask when in public and staying home when sick.

“We all have an important role to play. We must work together to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and protect the health of our community,” County Health Officer Hillary Hanson said in a prepared statement.

For up-to-date information on COVID-19 cases in Flathead County, go to https://www.flatheadhealth.org/novel-coronavirus-covid-19/