COVID cases tick higher in Fresno region. See the trends in The Bee’s interactive charts
New coronavirus infections in Fresno County this week already total more than any week since early April, and one more update on Friday seems destined to push the seven-day figure higher.
The California Department of Public Health and the Fresno County Department of Public Health reported Tuesday that there were 750 new COVID-19 cases in Fresno County since Friday. The two agencies are now issuing updates only twice each week, on Tuesdays and Fridays, instead of daily as occurred before the first week of April.
Tuesday’s update already gives Fresno County its fifth consecutive week of rising case totals after a string of almost three months of declines between January and April. Last week, there were 650 new coronavirus infections in Fresno County, up from 588 for the week ending May 3.
Fresno County also recorded three more fatalities from the virus since Friday, pushing the death toll for the county to at least 2,759 – a figure that is likely higher because of a lull between a patient’s death and when COVID-19 is confirmed as a cause of death on their death certificate.
This week so far includes reports of 136 new cases in Kings County, 71 in Madera County, 28 in Mariposa County, 175 in Merced County, and 189 in Tulare County. Like Fresno County, cases are now updated twice weekly for Merced and Tulare counties. Madera County, which updates fatalities every Tuesday, included 11 deaths over the past week – the first deaths there in almost three weeks.
The following charts show the surges and lulls in cases, deaths and hospitalizations over the past two years in Fresno County and the central San Joaquin Valley.
This story was originally published May 18, 2022 at 3:35 PM.
