TRENTON (1010 WINS) -- New Jersey reported its highest number of new COVID cases in nearly six months on Friday as Gov. Phil Murphy said he hadn't ruled out a statewide curfew to help stop the spread of the virus.
The state reported 2,089 new positive cases as the state continues to see a surge in cases and hospitalizations. The highest number of new cases, 273, were reported in Essex County. Another 235 were reported in Hudson County, while 223 were reported in Union County.
"We haven't seen daily case numbers in the 2000s since early May," Murphy tweeted. "Everyone needs to take this seriously."
There were 1,058 hospitalizations statewide, with 221 patients in intensive care and 79 requiring ventilators. The state also reported another seven deaths.
Speaking on CNN's "New Day" on Friday morning, the governor said a statewide curfew couldn't be ruled out.
"If we had to. I just hope we don't have to," Murphy said. "We've done it before. If we had to, we'd do it again. But please God, I hope we don't have to get to that."
In the interview, Murphy said colder weather has driven more residents indoors as COVID "fatigue" sets in and people grow "sick and tired of having to deal with this." He said the combination has helped lead to a surge in cases.
"A lot of the cases are coming from private homes, private gatherings," the governor said, adding that such gatherings are harder to control.
Asked what his anxiety level was on a scale of 1 to 10, Murphy said "it's probably 7, 8."
The governor said he's "very concerned" and "everything's on the table." He hopes the state can continue to focus on ramping up testing, tracing and outreach in specific areas instead of statewide restrictions.
On Thursday, Murphy warned that a second wave appeared to be imminent in the state.
"[The numbers] continue to show that the second wave of the coronavirus is no longer something off in the future. It is coming, and it is coming now," Murphy said.
"We have been seeing the numbers of new cases grow exponentially across the past several weeks, and along with that, the numbers of patients being treated in our hospitals has similarly been on the rise," he added.
