CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Cook County has recorded more than 10,000 deaths caused by the coronavirus, with more than half of the county’s deaths in communities of color.
“We mourn with the 10,000 families in our community who’ve experienced such great loss over the course of the last year,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, in a statement. “While there is light at the end of the tunnel, this is a sobering reminder that the virus is still with us and that we must continue to remain vigilant until we’ve achieved herd immunity.”
The racial makeup of the deaths fell heavily on communities of color. Forty-four percent of deaths were among white, non-Latino people. Black people accounted for 27 percent of deaths, while Latinos accounted for 22 percent of deaths; Asian people accounted for four percent of deaths. The other three percent was unknown.
Males accounted for 57 percent of the deaths and females accounted for 43 percent of the deaths, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. More than 80 percent of the deaths occurred in individuals over the age of 60. The oldest Cook County COVID-19 death was 109 years old. The youngest was 9 months old.
“While most of the deaths we have seen were in our elderly community, the virus still took from us hundreds of younger residents,” said Dr. Ponni Arunkumar, chief Medical Examiner for Cook County. “We must continue to take precautions while vaccinations are underway.”
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