Coronavirus cases spike in Florida as state sets daily record
- Almost 12,000 new cases were recorded on Saturday alone
- Florida’s record rise in cases was more than any European country’s daily peak at the height of the outbreak
Florida’s confirmed coronavirus cases rose by a record 11,458 on Saturday, the state’s health department said, the second time in three days that its caseload increased by more than 10,000.
In just the first four days of July, 14 states have posted a daily record increase in cases of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus that has killed nearly 130,000 Americans.
The recent surge, most pronounced in southern and western states, has alarmed public health officials, who urged caution ahead of the holiday weekend to celebrate the Declaration of Independence of the United States in 1776.
Florida’s record rise in cases was more than any European country’s daily peak at the height of the outbreak there.
North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alaska, Missouri, Idaho and Alabama all registered new daily highs on Friday, while Texas hit a new peak for hospitalisation.
The daily US tally of cases stood at 53,483 late on Friday, below the previous day’s record 55,405. Globally, the World Health Organisation reported a record 212,326 new coronavirus cases in the 24 hours ended early Saturday, the first infection total to top 200,000. The WHO has reported more than 163,000 new cases every day for the past week, led by the rise in the Americas