Fresno-area coronavirus surge: Region sees more than 2,100 new cases in three days
A glut of more than 1,000 new coronavirus infections – three straight days with at least 300 cases reported on Saturday, Sunday and Monday – has vaulted Fresno County to more than 36,000 cases since the global pandemic arrived locally in early March.
Valleywide, the six-county region comprised of Fresno, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced and Tulare counties collectively reported almost 2,200 new cases since Friday, including more than 1,270 on Monday. Several counties did not provide updates over the weekend until Monday.
For Fresno County, the California Department of Public Health reported Monday that positive test results were received for 342 new cases, following the disclosure of 357 cases on Saturday and 338 on Sunday. That’s a total of 1,037 new cases since Friday, and the first time since mid-August that Fresno County has seen three consecutive days with more than 300 new patients reported by the state.
Over the past seven days, an average of 288 new COVID-19 cases per day have surfaced in Fresno County. That’s also the highest seven-day average since late August, as big summer peak of new daily cases was starting to wane.
The number of patients being treated in Fresno County hospitals has more than doubled over the past two weeks, reaching 232 confirmed cases on Sunday, including 34 in intensive-care units. Two weeks earlier, hospitals in the county were handling 109 confirmed coronavirus patients, of whom 26 required intensive-care treatment.
Across the Valley
Monday’s updates from central San Joaquin Valley counties included:
Kings County: 267 new cases since Friday, which pushed the county’s cumulative total to 10,259; one additional death, 87 to date. More than 4,800 of the infections to date have been among inmates at state prisons in Avenal and Corcoran.
Madera County: 171 cases since Friday, 5,885 to date; no additional deaths, 80 to date.
Mariposa County: 18 new cases since Friday, 112 to date; no additional deaths, two to date.
Merced County: 402 cases since Friday, 11,388 to date; three additional deaths, 179 to date.
Tulare County: 209 cases since Friday, 19,882 to date; one additional death, 304 to date.
The number of confirmed cases in the Valley is now approaching 84,000 since the first local cases were identified in early March. The number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 now stands at 1,123.
Hospitals in the Valley held a total of 368 confirmed COVID-19 patients as of Sunday – the largest number since late August – including 57 patients in intensive-care units. Two weeks ago, the number of confirmed hospitalized patients was 177, less than half of Sunday’s total.
This story was originally published November 23, 2020 at 12:53 PM.
