The increase in coronavirus in California has begun to produce record deaths before Christmas, as hospitals struggle with capacity and the incredible number of cases shows few signs of decline.
Local officials recorded 363 deaths on Tuesday, a high that only surpassed the 428 deaths reported on Dec. 16 and far surpassing the previous high of 215 deaths in mid-July. Meanwhile, about 36,000 new cases were reported, which kept the seven-day average of new cases at 45,388, according to data collected by this news organization, an increase of more than 80% compared to just two weeks ago .
Hospitals have been overwhelmed for days by the growing need for care; as of Monday, there were 17,843 coronavirus patients admitted statewide, according to the California Department of Public Health. Only 1.4% of intensive care beds are available, with 0% capacity at the state’s population epicenter in Southern California. The bay area has approximately 13.5% ICU capacity.
The coronavirus has exploded across the country during the holiday season, as people experience “pandemic fatigue,” which led to first infections spreading and now death in California. Prior to December, the state’s worst fight with COVID-19 occurred in mid-July, when the record for historic deaths was just 215 and the seven-day average never exceeded 10,000 infections daily.
The increase in holidays has destroyed these previous records, placing the state in the worst position so far since the pandemic began about nine months ago. The average seven-day daily infection in California is now more than three times the maximum high before July, while the average seven-day death is almost double the previous high in early August. Its test positivity rate is about 13.3%, a sharp increase after hovering below 5% for most of the fall and surpassing the overall U.S. rate of approximately l ’11, 1%, according to the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine follow-up project COVID-19.
Los Angeles County remains the epicenter of the virus, which accounts for about a third of the state’s case load and nearly 40 percent of the more than 23,000 deaths recorded. Local officials, including Los Angeles County’s director of health services, Dr. Christina Ghaly, are asking residents to stay home during the holidays, instead of using COVID-19 tests prior to travel, as hospitals they reach capacity.
Los Angeles accounted for 85 of Tuesday’s more than 350 deaths, just after Fresno, which reported 89 deaths.
In the Bay Area of ten counties, Santa Clara County has recorded the most cases and deaths in total throughout the pandemic, followed by Alameda and Contra Costa. The region as a whole reported 39 deaths on Tuesday, 21 of them in the Alameda, eight in Santa Clara, five in San Mateo, three in Sonoma and two in Napa, as well as more than 4,000 new cases.
Although the region has maintained more hospital capacity than Southern California in recent weeks, the possibility of more infections and hospitalizations is achieved thanks to Christmas. According to an analysis by the Bay Area News Group, case rates soared in the region in the weeks following the thanksgiving, which experts say can be traced in part to family and friends meetings.