‘It’s just total chaos’: California becomes third state to exceed 25,000 deaths from COVID-19

California Thursday became the third state to exceed 25,000 COVID deaths, after New York and Texas. In Los Angeles County, many funeral homes are full to capacity and medical professionals are feeling under siege.

Hospitals in Southern California are at breaking point with 1 in 5 COVID-19 tests coming back positive.

“It’s just total chaos,” said nurse Tavonia Ekwegh, who heads the emergency department at Anaheim Global Medical Center. The tents outside the medical center are filling up.

“It’s a war zone, we have an ambulance running after an ambulance run,” Ekwegh said.

Hospitalizations are expected to double in January. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti put it bluntly: the “simple answer” is that Los Angeles hospitals cannot treat twice as many patients.

“People will die in the halls of our hospitals,” Garcetti said. “Our behavior will dictate whether people live or die as much as any action taken by the hospital.”

He sends additional patrols to end the New Year’s Eve celebrations. He estimated that “probably more than 1,000” officers will be on the streets.

His message to the townspeople is to be “rescuers, don’t be killers”.

“When 95% of people are doing the right thing, it’s still dangerous, let alone when 80% of people are doing the right thing, and it’s disastrous,” Garcetti said.

And for Garcetti, the the pandemic is now personal.

“Our own daughter. Took part in a fast food run and a shopping tour,” Garcetti said. “She had a positive COVID-19 test. We did everything right and it all happened to us.”