California reported 3,463 new COVID-19 cases Thursday and a total of 143,179 infections — even as residents across the state may start to feel as though they are returning to some semblance of normal after three months of shelter in place.
Depending on which county they live in, Californians have begun to dine out at favorite restaurants, shop at their local malls, work out at the gym and get haircuts or have their roots touched up. To varying degrees, the state and individual counties are in the process of relaxing shelter in place orders, which means, among other things, that campgrounds are reopening, tourists can return to Monterey County and families will be able to enjoy a summer trip to Disneyland.
But the specter of COVID-19 looms, as the number of cases continues to rise and health officials say that people should wear face masks when enjoying some of those favorite activities in public.
The number of new cases Thursday — 3,463 — represents the second highest number of new cases recorded in a singe day since the start of the pandemic, according to data compiled by this news organization. The number also represents a seven-day average of 2,939 new cases, the highest-ever seven-day average of new cases since the pandemic began.
People also continue to die from COVID-19. The state reported 74 fatalities Thursday, bringing the state’s death toll to 4,928, the data shows. The state is likely to record a grim milestone of 5,000 deaths from the coronavirus in the next day or two.
The Bay Area reported 258 new cases Thursday, with the total number of infections rising to 16,728. With those 258 cases Thursday, the Bay Area saw a seven-day average of 252 new cases, the region’s highest-ever seven-day average of new infections. Over the past seven days, the Bay Area has recorded 300 new cases on two of those days, on Monday and on June 5.
The Bay Area also reported six new deaths Thursday — three in Alameda County, two in Santa Clara County and one in Contra Costa County. Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 486 people have died in the nine Bay Area counties and in Santa Cruz County.
Alameda County, which has the Bay Area’s largest COVID-19 caseload, recorded 86 new cases Thursday, to bring its cumulative total of cases to 4,119. The county also has reported a total of 108 fatalities.
Because of its caseload, Alameda County health officials have been the most reluctant in the Bay Area to relax shelter in place orders. Neighboring Contra Costa County already allows outdoor dining and use of public pools, and will allow hair salons and barber shops to reopen in the next week, and fitness centers and indoor religious services to re-open July 1. But Alameda County is waiting two to four weeks to allow outdoor dining, outdoor shopping and swimming at public pools.
Elsewhere in California, Orange County recorded the third-highest number of new cases Thursday — 250. The home of Disneyland has recorded 7,987 total cases and 202 deaths since the start of the pandemic. Orange County also was the site of protests in May over the closure of its beaches and a recent controversy over its face-mask order.
In late May, Orange County’s chief public health officer, Dr. Nichole Quick, mandated that people wear face masks in public, the Los Angeles Times reported. Her order faced immediate resistance from residents and elected officials, and Quick herself even received death threats. She resigned on Monday, and her replacement, Dr. Clayton Chau, said Thursday that masks were no longer required — but strongly recommended.
With regard to concerns that California may be reopening its economy too soon, Gov. Gavin Newsom offered reassurances this week that the state is better prepared to handle the spread of COVID-19 than when the statewide shelter-in-place order was first implemented March 19.
During a meeting with community leaders in Oakland Tuesday, Newsom explained to a pool reporter that the state expects to continue to see an increase in the number of positive cases. But he also said “we are in a substantially different place than we were 90 days ago. We have hundreds of millions of masks now in our possession.”
Newsom also explained that California has increased its testing capacity — more than 60,000 tests per day compared with just 2,000 per day two months earlier. As of Thursday, more than 1.9 million tests had been conducted in the state. The increase in testing allows health officials to closely monitor the rate of positive tests, Newsom said.
Officials also keep a close watch on the number of people hospitalized with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19, Newsom said. The number increased slightly to 4,719 on Tuesday, the first time more than 4,700 people have been hospitalized since May 21. But Newsom said the increase in in-patients is not yet a cause for concern.
