The long-awaited 2020 U.S. census data released last Thursday showed a significant population increase in all six towns over the past decade.

Boards of health in four more Island towns voted unanimously this week to impose a mask mandate for indoor public spaces, and West Tisbury adopted a vaccination requirement for town employees.

The Martha’s Vineyard Hospital is seeing its largest numbers of Covid and non-Covid related patients since the pandemic began, testing emergency room capacity as cases spike on-Island during the peak of summer.

The Edgartown, Oak Bluffs and Tisbury boards of health voted unanimously to institute a mask mandate for indoor public spaces during a rare emergency, joint meeting Tuesday morning, changing course again as cases climb.

All three down-Island towns are scheduled to hold a joint emergency board of health meeting Tuesday to discuss an indoor mask mandate, as Covid cases continue to double by the week in August.

Chilmark lifeguards and town first responders lived up to their name on August 1, saving the life of a visitor who was pulled from the water with the help of bystanders at Lucy Vincent Beach.