COVID-19 has claimed seven more local residents as Florida reported another large spike in cases of the deadly virus on Thursday.
Five of the latest fatalities were in Marion County, with one each in Sumter and Lake counties. They are among the 989 tri-county area deaths, the 23,981 in Florida and the 386,996 across the country.
All told, Florida is reporting 1,531,192 cases – an increase of 13,720 from Wednesday to Thursday. Of those, 1,503,529 are residents. A total of 70,238 cases have been reported in long-term care centers and 28,073 in correctional facilities. Across the state, 67,036 people have been hospitalized.
Locally, Marion County is reporting 21,414 cases – an increase of 204 in a 24-hour period. There have been 525 deaths and 1,433 people have been hospitalized.
Ocala continues to pace Marion County with 15,782 cases – an overnight increase of 145. Others have been identified in Summerfield (1,315), Dunnellon (952), Belleview (893), Citra (376), Silver Springs (373), Ocklawaha (315), Reddick (224), Fort McCoy (192), Anthony (190), Weirsdale (154), The Villages (61), Salt Springs (37), Flemington (34), McIntosh (22), Sparr (20), Orange Lake (18), Candler (15), Lowell (15), Morriston (6), Orange Springs (6), East Lake (6) and Fairfield (5).
Below is a breakdown of other COVID-19 activity in the local area:
TRI-COUNTY AREA
- Cases: 46,381 – increase of 469
- Deaths: 989
- Hospitalizations: 2,922
LAKE COUNTY
- Cases: 18,753 – increase of 216
- Deaths: 339
- Hospitalizations: 1,073
- Cities with most cases: Clermont (4,910), Leesburg (3,023), Eustis (1,630), Mount Dora (1,415) and Tavares (1,382).
SUMTER COUNTY
- Cases: 6,214 – increase of 49
- Deaths: 125
- Hospitalizations: 416
- Areas/cities with most cases: The Villages (2,781), Coleman (783), Wildwood (774), Bushnell (665) and Oxford (366).