Lexington’s worst week yet: 362 COVID-19 cases in 1 day. Hospitalizations set record.
Lexington reported an all-time high of 636 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend.
The new cases included 274 on Saturday and 362 on Sunday, both of which were one-day records. There were also nine new hospitalizations. No new deaths were reported. The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department reported record highs for new cases (2,340) and hospitalizations (67) over the lasts seven days.
The new one-week case record topped the old case record by 882 infections.
The city reports Saturday’s and Sunday’s cases on Monday. The rest of the week, the previous day’s cases are reported the following morning.
The month of November has already had record numbers of new cases and hospitalizations for a single month. Deaths had been low this month until a surge of eight new deaths was reported last week. Health department leaders were worried that the death toll could be a sign of things to come as cases continue to spike.
“With this surge in cases, the fear is more people will die from COVID-19,” health department spokesman Kevin Hall said Friday.
Hospital staffing and capacity has also been a concern.
“The strain on hospitals and medical providers is a constant worry,” Hall said.
Fayette County’s incidence rate surged past 70 on Sunday. The incidence rate is used by the state Department for Public Health and determines the rate of coronavirus spread in each Kentucky county. An incidence rate of 25 puts a county in the “red zone,” which means there is critical community spread. Lexington’s rate is nearly triple that number.
The city’s rolling seven-day average of new cases per day has surpassed 240, which is more than double what it was at the beginning of the month.
The health department has continuously asked people to wear masks, wash hands often, stay home if they feel sick and avoid close contact with others.
Hall emphasized in a statement Monday that residents should be following those guidelines “all the time” if they want to “avoid another spike in cases after Thanksgiving.”
Lexington has reported a total of 15,636 cases, 112 deaths and 844 hospitalizations since the virus first reached Kentucky in March. In November alone, the city has reported 4,303 cases, 12 deaths and 155 hospitalizations.
Lexington received 5 complaints in first weekend of new mandates
Most of Gov. Andy Beshear’s new COVID-19 restrictions took effect Friday at 5 p.m. Restaurants and bars were ordered to close indoor service. Some other businesses were ordered to operate with capacity limits. Gyms and, fitness centers were limited to 33 percent of capacity; office-based businesses were limited to 33 percent of employees.
Venues and theaters were limited to 25 people in a room.
The Lexington health department received five complaints over the weekend, Hall said. The health department was investigating those complaints to see if they were legitimate, he said. No businesses had refused to follow the orders yet, Hall said.
If restaurants and bars violate the new mandates, they will be issued a notice to correct the violation, Hall said. If they fail to correct, they will be ordered to close all in-person services, including outdoor dining. Other businesses will be issued a notice to correct and will be penalized with fines if they fail to correct.
This story was originally published November 23, 2020 at 9:10 AM.