Drew Dixon
Only one county in the five-county First Coast region recorded any new daily coronavirus deaths in the most recent Florida Department of Health data released Tuesday, but it was a whopping increase in Duval County.
Jacksonville tallied 40 new deaths due to COVID-19 Tuesday, the biggest single-day jump in Northeast Florida since the pandemic began in March. Jacksonville’s death toll is now at 856.
The previous single-day increase in Jacksonville deaths was 20 in September.
Jacksonville has now tallied 75,731 total COVID-19 cases.
While cases and deaths continue to mount in Jacksonville, the positivity rate for testing has remained below 10% in Jacksonville for four straight days. Tuesday’s rate for positive results in testing came in at 9.8%. A week ago those positivity test rates were hovering around 15% in Jacksonville.
Across the First Coast, there are now 115,878 infections of coronavirus. The death toll passed a grim milestone, breaking the 1,300 mark for a total of 1,331 in Northeast Florida. The combined five-county positivity rate is now 11.08%, another notable drop in the past week when that number was leaning toward 15% seven days ago.
In other areas of the First Coast:
— St. Johns County has racked up 16,763 infections, held steady at 140 deaths and recorded a positivity test rate of 7.08%.
— Clay County has amassed 14,190 cases, remained unchanged in deaths at 221 and had a 12.41% positivity test rate.
— Nassau County has 6,341 cases, added no new deaths to its already reported 73 and recorded a positivity test rate of 12.41%.
— Baker County has 2,853 cases, held steady at 41 deaths and recorded a 13.18% positivity test rate.
Across Florida, there are now 1,589,097 coronavirus infections with 24,820 fatalities caused by the pandemic.
