By NANCY WEST, InDepthNH.org

GOFFSTOWN – A COVID-19 outbreak at Hillsborough County Nursing Home turned out to be worse than originally reported prompting help Tuesday from the National Guard and New Hampshire Medical Task Force to test all residents and staff, according to Administrator David Ross.

Ross said the total to date is now 30 infected residents, mostly with mild symptoms and five staffers, all of whom were asymptomatic. There have been no COVID-19 deaths at the nursing home, he said.

Ross said the 290 residents have been tested. Not all of the 400 staffers have been tested, but they will be before going back to work.

He said he is looking forward to serial testing of nursing home staff that Gov. Chris Sununu announced last week, but hasn’t yet started.

The hardest part for many of the staff is worrying about transmitting the virus to their patients or taking it home to their families.

“These folks have shown amazing courage,” Ross said.