As local health officials warn of "very dark days ahead" in the continuing COVID-19 crisis, the latest proved to be the darkest in California's pandemic yet.
Another one-day record of 379 coronavirus-related deaths was reported Thursday by the California Department of Public Health, well above the previous single-day high of 293 deaths reported just 24 hours earlier.
Health officials confirmed an estimated 52,000 new cases. On Wednesday, new coronavirus cases came in at over 53,000. However, the state cautioned both daily totals are the result of a new auto-processing feature, which allows them to catch up on the large volume of new cases reported prior to Wednesday.
The new figures released Thursday mean the state has seen more than 1,000 deaths over the last five days and almost 106,000 cases in two days.
ICU capacity is shrinking in the state’s defined regions, too.
Southern California has bottomed out at 0.0% and the San Joaquin Valley sits at 0.7%. In the Bay Area, which dropped below the mandated 15% ICU capacity Wednesday and will join the regional stay-at-home order late Thursday, moved to 13.1%. The Greater Sacramento region is at 11.3%.
Northern California, the only region not yet impacted by state’s regional stay-at-home order, is listed at 25.8% ICU capacity.
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