New COVID-19 cases top 3,700. Growth threatens health care capacity, Beshear says.
Kentucky reported 3,711 new cases of COVID-19 Saturday, the second-highest so far during the pandemic, and 21 more deaths.
“Today is our second highest day, just behind yesterday,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news release. “We continue to be in exponential growth, which will threaten the health care capacity in this state. That’s why we’re taking action and that’s why we’re fighting back.”
There were 3,825 new cases Friday, which was a new record for the state.
As of Saturday, 1,514 people with coronavirus were hospitalized in Kentucky, including 370 in ICU and 202 on a ventilator.
The deaths reported Saturday brought the state’s total to 1,783 lives lost as a result of COVID-19. Most of the deaths reported Saturday were people in their 70s, 80s and 90s, but they also included a 43-year-old man from Jefferson County and a 58-year-old man from Barren County.
The state’s positivity rate as of Saturday was 9.14 percent.
The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department reported 237 new cases of coronavirus Saturday, and three more deaths related to the virus.
The new cases pushed the city’s total to 15,000.
There have been 112 deaths among Lexington residents since the pandemic began. The health department said the deaths reported Saturday included one person in their 70s and two people in their 80s.
Beshear on Saturday reiterated the importance of the latest restrictions he has put in place through emergency orders.
“I know these steps are hard, but I want to thank the vast majority of individuals and businesses out there – many that are hurt the most by these steps we’re taking – that are stepping up, agreeing and doing it right, knowing that the future of so many lives depends on it,” he said in the release. “And there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, with two effective vaccines. We’ve just got to get there. Let’s make sure that we work hard to protect one another, make sure our most vulnerable are there to get the vaccine. So mask up, follow these steps we’re taking the next three weeks and let’s stop this growth of the coronavirus.”
This story was originally published November 21, 2020 at 5:56 PM.
