(Laura Seitz, KSL file)
SALT LAKE CITY — A record 2,292 more Utahns tested positive for COVID-19 out of 10,346 new tests. Three more people are reported to have died.
The numbers came a day after state officials, including Gov. Gary Herbert, pleaded with Utahns to do their part to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Friday, in conjunction with the new record high number of Utahns testing positive for COVID-19, Herbert issued the following statement.
While it is true that Utah’s COVID-19 mortality rate is substantially lower than the national rate, we must not become numb to what these numbers mean for our communities — for those infected, for everyone who loves them. Assuming a 5 percent hospitalization rate, and a 0.5 percent fatality rate, we would see 115 hospitalizations and 11 deaths, just from the nearly 2,300 cases we are announcing today. This will cause increasing strain on our already overworked medical professionals, and leave even more families with an empty chair at their dinner table. And that is to say nothing of the long-term effects many more of these Utahns will face, even as they recover. We cannot be too cautious in our efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19.
The increase of 2,292 cases from the day before means a total of 112,932 Utahns have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the outbreak.
With 10,346 tested in that 24 hour period, that means the percentage of positive COVID-19 tests was 22%. The rolling seven day average for positive tests is 1,622 per day, and the rolling seven day average for percent of positive lab tests is 18.2%.
State officials say 318 people currently require hospital treatment for COVID-19.
The three additional deaths mean 601 Utahns have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Today’s deaths included a Salt Lake County man between the ages of 25 and 44 who was in the hospital; a Tooele County man between the ages of 44 and 65 who was also in the hospital; and a Davis County woman between the ages of 65 and 84 who lived in a long-term care facility.
COVID-19 coronavirus spreads person to person, similar to the common cold and the flu. So, to prevent it from spreading:
Utah’s Coronavirus Information
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Utah Coronavirus Information Line – 1-800-456-7707
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention