Coronavirus update: Fresno reports 500 new cases in two days as death toll update looms
More than 500 new coronavirus cases were reported in Fresno County over the past two days, totaling more than 1,330 people newly infected by the virus over the past week, according to the California Department of Public Health.
On Thursday, 263 new COVID-19 cases were recorded, a day after reporting 269 infections. Over two days, that tallies to 532 total cases, according to state data, bringing the total to 33,287 since the pandemic began.
No new deaths were reported Thursday, keeping the total at 456. Local health officials will provide an update on deaths Friday.
This is the first time in months Fresno County has seen a rapid increase in new cases. The last time the county had back-to-back days with 260 or more cases was in late August when 305 and 357 cases were reported over two consecutive days.
Local and state officials for weeks have been worried the uptick in new cases will cause a strain to the county’s hospitals. It typically takes five to seven days before a patient may become sick enough to seek care at a hospital, according to public health experts. Hospital stays for seriously ill coronavirus patients could last days or weeks before a person either recovers or dies from the virus.
There are now 132 hospitalized patients across the county, where 33 of them are in the ICU.
As of Wednesday, the two-week average number of hospitalizations in Fresno County was 104, including an average of 27 in ICUs. A month ago, the two-week average was 94 patients, including 18 in ICUs.
If the situation worsens and the number of patients outpaces the hospital system’s available resources such as ventilators, medical staffing, and beds, it could force businesses to close back down again. Health officials say lockdowns are the best way to prevent the virus from rapidly spreading and would help keep the county’s hospitalizations low.
Across the central San Joaquin Valley, 715 new cases were reported on Thursday. Thursday’s totals represent two days’ worth of cases in Kings, Madera, Merced, and Tulare counties. The seven-day average of new cases is about 421 per day.
There have been a total of 77, 068 COVID-19 cases Valleywide since the virus first hit and 1,086 deaths.
State, national updates
California became the second state in the U.S. to surpass 1 million coronavirus infections, with an additional 10,156 reported Thursday. As the virus continues to spread, state officials say the number of cases is likely more than what is being reported. On Thursday, California reported a total of 1,005,832 confirmed cases and 18,137 deaths, up 31 from the day before. The state’s weekly case rate is now averaging to about 6,719 per day, while fatalities total to about 38 daily deaths.
Statewide, cases have steadily climbed over the past month resulting in 3,224 hospitalizations, an increase of about 1,000 more than in mid-October. The number of patients in ICUs has also significantly increased to nearly 900, according to state data.
With winter arriving and more people congregating indoors, the pandemic for the ninth consecutive day has continued to shatter records. The U.S. on Thursday added 163,402 new COVID-19 infections and 1,172 new deaths, according to an analysis by The New York Times.
In nearly half of all states, case numbers are soaring like never before. Vermont, Utah, and Oregon reported single-day case records on Thursday, while Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Minnesota also surpassed previous single-day records by more than 1,000 cases. Wisconsin exceeded 300,000 cases in the past week, increasing by more than 130,000 in just one month.
Over the past two weeks, the daily new case rate has increased by more than 72% as the U.S. averages about 134,078 cases per day. On Thursday, the nationwide case tally had nearly reached 11 million cases, sitting at a total of 10.6 million. Two hundred forty-two thousand eight hundred sixty-one total deaths were reported across the country since the pandemic began. The number of daily new deaths is now averaging above 1,000 per day.
The Covid Tracking Project reports that hospitalizations nationwide are up, having climbed to a total of 67,096, doubling in a little more than a month.
In a televised interview on Thursday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s top health official, warned Americans to “double down” on taking precautionary measures as the number of cases across the country continues to soar and COVID-19 hospitalizations ramp up.
Though another nationwide lockdown was unlikely, he said virus cases could decrease if U.S. residents took preventive steps, such as wearing masks and social distancing, The New York Times reports.
“I believe that we can do it without a lockdown, I really do,” he said.