Fresno County reports 220 new coronavirus cases. Are social gatherings to blame for rise?
Along with another death related to the coronavirus, Fresno County on Wednesday reported an additional 220 positive cases, according to health officials.
Fresno County now has tallied 71 deaths from its 3,892 positive cases of COVID-19, according to officials.
Tulare County reported another 99 positive cases in its Wednesday update in the county that now has seen 3,533 cases. Two more deaths brings that total to 118.
Officials say the rate of infection is increasing around the state as many businesses have rejoined the economy and people are gathering in social settings.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday blamed birthday parties, children’s play dates and other private gatherings for much of the statewide increase. He warned that younger people who are getting lax about restrictions are spreading the disease to older and more vulnerable people.
The central San Joaquin Valley on Monday passed 10,000 cases of the coronavirus. Of those patients, 220 have died in the Valley.
Kings County has reported 20 deaths through Wednesday morning, including deaths in prisons and nursing facilities.
Kings said 986 cases on Wednesday — 44 more than the day before — of coronavirus have been detected in its residents since the beginning of the pandemic, not including prisoners or patients at nursing facilities according to the evening update.
The county’s prisons have found 1,130 cases and nursing facilities in Kings County have recorded 118 cases. Kings first reported Tuesday that 11 people have died in nursing facilities. That’s one more in a prison and three more in nursing homes on Wednesday compared to the previous day.
Madera County reported 11 new positive cases, bringing the total there to 370, but the county did not report any new deaths Wednesday. The total number of fatal cases remains at five.
Merced County tallied 31 new cases and one new death to reach 741 total infections and 10 deaths so far during the pandemic.
Mariposa County said its 21 cases and single death did not change on Wednesday from the previous day.
The percentage of Californians testing positive for the coronavirus is increasing as the state has reopened its economy, Newsom said Wednesday, calling it a sign that people are letting their guard down and not doing enough to prevent the virus’ spread.
The percentage of people who have tested positive over the past two weeks is about 5.1 percent. The same number over the last 7 days is up to 5.6 percent, he said. On Monday, Newsom had said the two-week positive rate was 4.8 percent.
The U.S. has seen more than 2.3 million cases and nearly 115,000 deaths, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
The Sacramento Bee contributed to this report.
This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 4:08 PM.
