At his daily briefing, Gov. Andy Beshear on Saturday said 183 new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) were confirmed in Kentucky over the previous 24 hours.
The new cases raise the state’s total to 13,630 COVID-19 cases.
“The virus remains a serious threat to Kentuckians,” Beshear warned. “As we try to safely return to a new normal, we can’t forget we’re still up against an invisible enemy.”
Two new deaths were also reported Saturday, increasing Kentucky’s death toll to 524 (3.8 percent fatality rate) victims.
The deaths reported Saturday were a 91-year-old woman from Hopkins County and an 80-year-old woman from Jefferson County.
Hopkins Co., about 75 miles west of Grayson County, has the third highest number of fatal cases in Kentucky, as 32 people from the county of about 46,000 (23rd most populous county) have perished after contracting the virus. Hopkins Co., with 232 confirmed cases of the virus, ranks tenth in the state in total COVID-19 cases, and has a 13.8 percent fatality rate, a full 10 percentage points ahead of the state’s fatality rate.
On a more optimistic note, Hopkins Co. reported only one new case of the virus on Saturday.
Officials said 2,522 (18.5 percent) people have been hospitalize since the onset of the pandemic, with 354 patients currently in a hospital. To date, 980 (7.2 percent) victims have undergone treatment in ICU, with 62 people currently in intensive care.
At least 3,530 (25.9 percent) Kentuckians have recovered from the virus, and 347,331 (7.9 percent of the population) COVID-19 tests have been administered in the state.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
