Despite the ongoing vaccination effort, new daily cases of COVID-19 are beginning to rise once again in parts of the United States. To date, there have been 48,413,300 reported cases of the virus nationwide — and that number is growing every day.
In the Fort Smith metropolitan area, which covers parts of Arkansas and Oklahoma, a total of 49,606 COVID-19 cases have been reported to date. Adjusted for population, there have been 17,641 reported infections for every 100,000 people in the area — above the national rate of 14,798 cases per 100,000 people.
The higher than average per capita COVID-19 infection rate across Fort Smith is being driven by a high concentration of the virus in one area in particular.
The broader Fort Smith metro area comprises four counties or county equivalents, which can include independent cities — and of them, Sebastian County has the most COVID-19 cases per capita. So far, there have been a total of 23,217 infections in Sebastian County, or 18,215 for every 100,000 people.
Not only does Sebastian County have the most COVID-19 infections per capita in the Fort Smith area, it also has more deaths attributable to the virus per capita than the metro area as a whole. There have been a total of 309 coronavirus deaths for every 100,000 people in Sebastian County, compared to 267 COVID-19 deaths per 100,000 across the entire Fort Smith metro area.
All COVID-19 data used in this story are current as of Dec. 3, 2021.
| Rank | Geography | COVID cases per 100,000 people | Total cases | Deaths per 100,000 people | Total deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastian County, AR | 18,215 | 23,217 | 309 | 394 |
| 2 | Crawford County, AR | 17,701 | 11,058 | 288 | 180 |
| 3 | Le Flore County, OK | 16,915 | 8,442 | 178 | 89 |
| 4 | Sequoyah County, OK | 16,657 | 6,889 | 215 | 89 |
ALERT: Take This Retirement Quiz Now (Sponsored)
Take the quiz below to get matched with a financial advisor today.
Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.
Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future
Take the retirement quiz right here.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Editors' Picks
