Three Bay Area counties have the most new cases since pandemic began

Three Bay Area counties registered the most new coronavirus infections since the pandemic began on Saturday, as the COVID-19 outbreak in California continued and public health officials imposed new ones restrictions to slow the spread.

Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco counties recorded the most new cases since this news agency began tracking data on coronavirus infections in April, an alarming development that officials say could warrant a other lock. The Bay Area recorded 2,281 new cases of the virus and six new deaths, for a total of 149,004 cases and 1,962 deaths.

The new cases came a day after San Mateo and San Francisco counties were moved from the restriction level “red” to the much stricter level “purple”, joining the rest of the Bay Area at the most stringent level. restrictive. The two counties also joined the counties of Lake, Calaveras, Plumas and Modoc.

Santa Clara County on Saturday recorded 747 new cases for a total of 33,732, the highest recorded since the start of the pandemic, and had no new deaths to add to the total of 476. County officials released on Saturday new restrictions in light of the growing workload and instituted a ban on everyone on all professional, college and high school sporting events.

Authorities also issued a mandatory quarantine for those traveling to the region over 150 miles away and new capacity limits for domestic businesses.

The restrictions came just hours after a rollback from San Francisco and San Mateo counties, both of which posted record numbers on Saturday. San Francisco, which had been championed as the state’s model for coronavirus prevention, recorded 256 new cases for a total of 15,342.

Due to the new restrictions, some of the city’s famous attractions will be closed again. The deYoung Museum and the San Francisco Legion of Honor Museum have closed and will remain closed for the next two weeks to comply with the new restrictions just months after their recent reopening to the public.

The San Francisco Art Museums – which manages the deYoung and the Legion of Honor – have announced a series of virtual events and podcasts to continue serving art lovers in the Bay Area. The Museum of Modern Art, The Museum of Asian Art, are also closed and offer events online. And the California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium are also closed.

So far, 160 people in the city have died from the virus. Officials recorded no new deaths on Saturday.

In San Mateo County, authorities on Saturday reported 441 new cases – the highest number ever recorded in a single day for that county – for a total of 14,148. One hundred and seventy people have died in the county from the virus, but authorities did not report any new deaths on Saturday.

The county’s famous parks and reserves, which have been closed from time to time due to the pandemic and historic wildfires, are expected to face new restrictions in order to slow the spread of the virus.

In the rest of the Bay Area, the number of cases is also increasing, but not so drastically.