The rise in coronavirus in California has begun to result in a record number of deaths before Christmas, as hospitals struggle with capacity, and the staggering number of cases show few signs of reduction.
Local officials recorded 363 deaths on Tuesday, with a maximum following only the 428 deaths reported on December 16 and far exceeding the previous peak in mid-July of 215 deaths. Meanwhile, nearly 36,000 new cases have been reported, keeping the seven-day average for new cases at 45,388, according to data compiled by the news organization – up 80 percent from 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 hospitalized nationwide, according to the California Department of Public Health. Only 1.4% of intensive care unit beds are available, with a capacity of 0% in the entire population of the epicenter of the state of Southern California. The bay area has a capacity of about 13.5% ICU.
The coronavirus exploded nationwide during the holiday season, as people face “pandemic fatigue,” first causing growing infections and now deaths across California. Prior to December, the state’s worst fight with COVID-19 took place in mid-July, when the all-time death toll was just 215, and the average seven-day case never exceeded 10,000 daily infections.
The rise of the holidays has shattered these previous records, putting the state in its worst position since the pandemic began about nine months ago. The average seven-day daily infection in California is now more than three times its previous peak in July, while the average seven-day death is almost twice its peak in early August. Its test positivity rate is about 13.3%, a sharp increase after falling below 5% for most of the fall and surpassing the overall US rate of about 11.1%, according to the COVID follow-up project -19 of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Los Angeles County remains the epicenter of the virus, accounting for about a third of the state’s number of cases and nearly 40% of the more than 23,000 deaths recorded in total. Local officials, including the director of health services in LA County, Dr. Christina Ghaly, are urging residents to stay home during the holidays – rather than using COVID-19 tests before the trip – as hospitals reach capacity.
Los Angeles accounted for 85 of Tuesday’s more than 350 deaths, second only to Fresno, which reported 89 deaths.
In the golf area of 10 counties, Santa Clara County recorded the most cases and deaths in total during the pandemic, followed by Alameda and Contra Costa. The region as a whole reported 39 deaths on Tuesday, of which 21 were in the Alameda, eight in Santa Clara, five in San Mateo, three in Sonoma and two in Napa, plus more than 4,000 new cases.
Although the region has maintained a higher hospital capacity than in Southern California in the last few weeks, the possibility of increased infections and hospitalizations is looming much due to Christmas. According to an analysis by the Bay Area News Group, case rates took off in the region in the weeks after Thanksgiving, which experts say can be partially traced back to family and friends.