Coronavirus updates: Cases triple in California in past month; how Fresno reacts to curfew
The number of coronavirus cases in California tripled in the last 30 days as residents in Fresno and the central San Joaquin Valley began the first week of a nightly curfew called by Gov. Gavin Newsom in an effort to bring the deadly pandemic under control.
The Los Angeles Times reported COVID-19 is infecting more residents than at any previous point during the pandemic. The state was reported to be experiencing more than 11,500 new coronavirus cases a day, during the past seven days.
In numbers released Sunday by state officials, California had 1,102,033 confirmed cases. The officials cautioned that the numbers might not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed. Officials added that the seven-day positivity rate was 6%, and the 14-day positivity rate was 5.5%. There have been 22,237,309 tests conducted in California. That represented an increase of 265,477 over the prior 24-hour reporting period.
The surge in cases was reported as protests against new restrictions to businesses were staged Saturday at noon by restaurant owners, and demonstrators defied the curfew Saturday night at Blackstone and Shaw avenues.
The California Department of Public Health said Saturday there have been 1,087,714 confirmed cases of the coronavirus. There were 15,442 newly recorded confirmed cases through the previous day.
The curfew called by Newsom is in effect 10 p.m. through 5 a.m. It continues daily for a month in an effort to drive down infections, according to state health officials.
Area law enforcement officials said last week that they have no plans to enforce the curfew, but agents from the state Alcohol Beverage Control agency say they will act against anyone serving alcohol after 10 p.m.
Fresno County’s case update
Fresno County endured another day with 300-plus more positive coronavirus test results reported.
The 338 additional COVID-19 cases, posted through the end of Saturday according to the California Department of Public Health, brought total cases in the county since start of the pandemic in March to 35,973.
There have been 2,004 cases added in Fresno County during the past seven days.
Los Angeles restaurants told to halt in-person service
Los Angeles County announced new coronavirus-related restrictions on restaurants Sunday that will prohibit in-person dining for at least three weeks, dealing a major blow to an already hard-hit business sector.
The county’s new rules take effect at 10 p.m. Wednesday. Restaurants, breweries, wineries and bars will only be able to offer takeout, drive-thru and delivery services.
County officials had warned that these restrictions could come if the county’s five-day average of new cases was above 4,000 or hospitalizations were more than 1,750 per day. Sunday’s five-day average was 4,097 cases and there were 1,401 hospitalizations.
A return to the stay-at-home order for all but essential work and shopping has been threatened if the case counts continue to worsen.
Los Angeles County officials are on the verge of announcing even more stringent measures, including a possible lockdown if cases climb further.
This story was originally published November 22, 2020 at 9:39 AM.