Another record day of COVID-19 positive tests pushes Utah over 100,000 cases during pandemic

Nurse Polly Crookston talks with a patient at a new COVID-19 testing site in the parking lot of Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City on Monday, Oct. 12, 2020. The testing site is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to noon. Appointments are required. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

Governor says state ‘on the brink’ as 1,960 new cases reported, 4 more deaths

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah recorded nearly 2,000 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, shattering the record set a day earlier, the Utah Department of Health reported.

The 1,960 positives top Thursday’s record of 1,543 cases and continue a streak of now 10 straight days with more than 1,000 new COVID-19 infections diagnosed. The state has seen 101,509 novel coronavirus cases since the pandemic hit earlier this year. The seven-day average for new cases stands at 1,355, with the average positive rate of 15.8%.

Gov. Gary Herbert sounded an alarming tone in a statement released with the new results.

“Today we stand on the brink. If Utahns do not take serious steps to limit group gatherings and wear masks, our health care providers will not have the ability to provide quality care for everyone who needs it,” Herbert said.

Health officials also reported four more deaths, bringing the state’s toll to 567. The victims were: two Salt Lake County men, one between ages 45 and 64 and the other age 65-84, both hospitalized at time of death; a Davis County man age 45-64, also hospitalized; and a Washington County man over 85 who was in a long-term facility.

Hospitalizations continued to rise in the Beehive State, with a total of 313 people being treated in hospitals. On Thursday, the health department reported 301 people were hospitalized.

The continuing surge led the state on Thursday to place all but eight counties into its high level of transmission category, which places mask requirements in public settings and limits gatherings to 10 or fewer.

This story will be updated.

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