For the second consecutive day, California broke a record for the most coronavirus infections reported — 8,610 cases, according to The Times’ tracker — another troubling sign that COVID-19 is spreading more rapidly in communities across the state.
It was the second time the state has recorded more than 8,000 cases in a single day.
The percent of coronavirus tests coming back positive in California continues to rise — hitting 5.95% Tuesday, a Los Angeles Times analysis found, up from 5.28% a week earlier, and 4.45% a week before that. That’s another indication that disease spread is worsening.
Los Angeles County reported the third straight day of more than 2,100 additional confirmed cases. Officials reported 45 more COVID-19-related deaths and 2,779 new cases.
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Monday brought L.A.’s highest single-day tally to date, which pushed the county past 100,000 infections.
“The L.A. County community needs to come together again to slow the spread of COVID-19, and we need to act with haste and urgency,” L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement.
Orange County set its own daily record Tuesday, with 779 new confirmed coronavirus cases. The county now has nearly 14,000 cases and 340 deaths.
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On the same day, California as a whole hit a grim milestone when it exceeded 6,000 deaths. That is still far fewer than other coronavirus hot spots, such as New York and New Jersey, but the increase in overall case numbers and the stress on hospitals are raising alarms.
The enormous surge in cases, which now total more than 223,900 statewide, has prompted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to order anyone traveling to his state from California — and 15 other states that have seen recent surges — to self-quarantine for 14 days.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he plans Wednesday to announce further restrictions intended to stem the spread of the virus.
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“We’ll be making some additional announcements on efforts to use that dimmer switch that we’ve referred to and begin to toggle back on our stay-at-home order and tighten things up,” Newsom said. “The framework for us is this: If you’re not going to stay home, and you’re not going to wear masks in public, we have to enforce, and we will.”
The governor warned that changes would also include restrictions on indoor gatherings but did not provide details. Newsom said family gatherings have been one of the “areas of biggest concern” as immediate and extended family members have been mixing together.
On Tuesday, Ventura County joined Los Angeles County in closing beaches during the holiday.
Laguna Beach City Council members voted to close city beaches Tuesday night, as Huntington Beach officials opted to keep them open, and Newport Beach officials are still mulling plans.
