South Florida hits 9.8K COVID-19 fatalities after newest report shows 52 additional deaths

Image via AP.

South Florida’s tri-county area recorded another 52 COVID-19 deaths in Monday’s report, continuing a grim trend where deaths continue to add up despite pushes to make a vaccine more widely available.

The region has now seen at least 30 deaths for 23 of the last 25 days. South Florida saw similar stretches during the summer surge in cases, often approaching or topping 100 deaths in a single day.

The tri-county area has not seen its daily death totals reach that mark during the recent post-winter holiday spike. But the sustained trend in deaths continues despite treatment advances made since the summer and a vaccine rollout now entering its third month.

Monday’s reported death toll — which records when deaths were reported, not necessarily when they occurred — puts South Florida at exactly 9,800 COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic’s start.

The overall downward trend in cases did continue, with the region recording fewer than 1,400 cases for the first time since early November. That’s partially due to a large testing lag which is standard over the weekend and likely amplified by Valentine’s Day on Sunday. But the general direction in cases remains a reassuring one, and the case positivity rate is at or below 7% in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Here are some of the weekly numbers for the previous three weeks throughout the South Florida tri-county area:

Miami-Dade

— Jan. 25-31: 37 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 23 newly-reported deaths per day, 1,776 new confirmed cases per day, 7.6% positivity rate

— Feb. 1-7: 30 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 19 newly-reported deaths per day, 1,587 new confirmed cases per day, 7.3% positivity rate

— Feb. 8-14: 28 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 21 newly-reported deaths per day, 1,378 new confirmed cases per day, 6.5% positivity rate

Broward

— Jan. 25-31: 26 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 10 newly-reported deaths per day, 938 new confirmed cases per day, 7.9% positivity rate

— Feb. 1-7: 28 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 10 newly-reported deaths per day, 855 new confirmed cases per day, 7.3% positivity rate

— Feb. 8-14: 22 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 12 newly-reported deaths per day, 795 new confirmed cases per day, 6.8% positivity rate

Palm Beach

— Jan. 25-31: 14 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 6 newly-reported deaths per day, 668 new confirmed cases per day, 8.1% positivity rate

— Feb. 1-7: 22 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 15 newly-reported deaths per day, 525 new confirmed cases per day, 7% positivity rate

— Feb. 8-14: 21 newly-reported hospitalizations per day, 11 newly-reported deaths per day, 475 new confirmed cases per day, 7% positivity rate