“No way to sugarcoat it: Today is the very worst day we have had for reporting on the spread of the coronavirus and it is the deadliest day that we have had,” said Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear during Tuesday’s COVID briefing. “This is exponential growth.”
As of 4 p.m. Dec. 1, Kentucky had 4,151 new cases of the coronavirus, 35 new deaths, 1,777 people hospitalized and 441 in the ICU, with 241 on a ventilator. The state’s positivity rate is 9.59%.
“That’s the highest number we have ever had,” he said, referring to the 4,000-plus new cases, 461 of which are kids.
Beshear said the state broke its records for new cases, for the most cases reported in children under 18, for the most people hospitalized, for the most people in the ICU, for the highest positivity rate and for a “record number of people on a ventilator fighting for their lives.”
Boone and Kenton counties were in the state’s top 10 highest for reporting new cases — as of yesterday, Kenton had 126 new COVID cases and Boone had 102. Campbell County reported 73. Jefferson County, where Louisville is located, reported 700 new cases over 24 hours.
“There’s a huge amount of virus spreading rapidly in every county across the Commonwealth, which means it takes all of us doing our part in a concerted effort if we are going to slow this spread and save lives,” Beshear said.
Find COVID testing sites in Kentucky at govstatus.egov.com/ky-covid-testing.
“We need you to continue to get tested, and it’s not for the numbers we read,” Beshear said, “but it’s for your safety to make sure if you’re positive, you can get the help that you may need, and it’s also to prevent the spread to other people.”
This article appears in The Holiday Issue.