What to know
- Authorities are investigating a new group of COVID cases in Suffolk County linked to the July 4 games; Authorities say the parties were below the 50-person threshold, but many people were not wearing masks or spacing
- Suffolk County saw its point positivity rate as high as 2 percent on Monday, the highest in a few weeks, but overall infection rates remain low.
- Statewide, New York topped 25,000 confirmed virus deaths on Wednesday (25,003), when Governor Andrew Cuomo added nine more names to the figure.
New York state’s confirmed virus deaths topped 25,000 on Wednesday when Governor Andrew Cuomo added nine more names to the figure.
Daily death tolls have fallen to single digits in recent weeks, below an 11-day “hell” stretch in April, according to the governor, where nearly 800 New Yorkers died per day. New York City accounts for most of the state-confirmed deaths (65 percent) and adds another 4,616 deaths that were likely attributable to the virus but were never connected by diagnosis.
Cuomo acknowledges that the actual death toll in the state is likely to be much higher, and warns that it could grow further if New Yorkers do not continue mitigation measures like masks and social distancing that he said turned the curve in the first place.
“New Yorkers went down the curve making big changes, and we see that work is reflected in the numbers every day,” Cuomo said Wednesday. “But we must remain smart, wearing a mask, social distancing and washing our hands. We cannot go back to the hell we experienced three months ago, so please remain vigilant and resistant to New York.”
Lack of compliance in some parts of the state is already fueling new outbreaks. The parties over the July 4 weekend on Long Island have contributed to a surge in COVID-19 cases, some of which may be due to disregard for social distancing or mask wear measures, the authorities.
Contact search teams gathered at a party in Holtsville, Suffolk County, where more than a quarter of attendees tested positive for coronavirus. While county officials say neither side was particularly large and they were all below the state’s 50-person threshold for meetings, the people’s behavior is helping to drive Suffolk infection numbers in the wrong direction. .
“We need everyone to follow the lead if we’re going to beat this virus. If you somehow thought the fight was over, that this was over, think again,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone.
Bellone noted that the number of new daily positive COVID cases surpassed 100 in Suffolk County on Monday for the first time since late May. Additionally, 42 percent of new cases are people age 30 and younger, he said. That includes 10 county lifeguards who apparently contracted the virus away from their beach jobs.
“If this trend continues, if these numbers continue to rise, it means that more lives will be lost with this virus,” Bellone said.
Cuomo echoed those sentiments Tuesday. He said he was concerned that infection rates were increasing “alarmingly” among twentysomethings in New York and reminded young people that they don’t feel they need to wear masks that, in unequivocal terms, “ARE WRONG.”
“It only takes one person at a party to spread COVID,” he added later. “Wear a mask and be smart. It’s the only way to continue to stay safe.”
In addition to Holtsville, county officials declined to say where the other parts occurred. They said Fire Island, home to a plethora of July 4 parties seen with crowds on social media, was not among them.
Daily Percentage of Positive Tests by New York Region
With the entire state of New York in some phase of reopening, Governor Andrew Cuomo is shifting his focus to monitoring test results on a daily basis in each region to identify potential hot spots before they arise. Here are the latest tracking data by region. For the latest countywide results for the state, click here
The daily positivity rate in Suffolk County on Monday, the most recent data available, was 2 percent. That’s double what the county had seen for several weeks, though Cuomo cautions it’s a one-day number and shouldn’t be overrated. Suffolk County has confirmed 1,993 COVID deaths to date, making it the 11th deadliest virus county in the country, according to Johns Hopkins data. However, he has not seen a fatality in the past four days.
Overall, it has confirmed nearly 42,500 COVID cases as of Wednesday. Neighboring Nassau County has slightly higher total cases, as well as a higher number of confirmed deaths (2,190).
Long Island is now in Phase IV of Cuomo’s reopening plan, allowing low-risk indoor and outdoor locations such as museums, aquariums, and zoos to reopen. The governor said that shopping malls could also reopen in Phase IV regions last week if they have certain air filtration systems to ensure the virus does not circulate again.
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