New York State saw its largest single-day death toll from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) on Tuesday 7 April 2020, even as hospitalizations are beginning to plateau.
New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo, disclosed that 731 residents had succumbed to the virus in the past 24 hours, raising the statewide death toll to 5,489.
“We talk about numbers, but that is 731 people who we lost,” the governor said. “Behind every one of those numbers is an individual, is a family – is a mother, is a father, is a sister, is a brother. So a lot of pain again today for many New Yorkers and they are in our thoughts and prayers.”
To put it in context, Britain, which has a population three times that of New York State — has suffered a slightly lower number of deaths.
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Cuomo said he is still projecting that the state — which has recorded nearly 140,000 confirmed virus cases — is reaching a plateau on hospitalizations. The numbers of patients requiring intubation to breathe and intensive care treatment are also starting to slow.
“Again this a projection, it still depends on what we do, and what we do will affect these numbers,” he cautioned, reminding people to continue to be vigilant about staying home and social distancing.
Read also: African COVID-19 Cases Hit 10,068 Despite Lockdown
The governor also said the state health department has approved an antibody test to determine who has contracted the virus and recovered from it, and would likely be immune to it. He called on private sector companies to work with the state to produce the tests, because they will be needed on a massive scale to test enough people to get local businesses and schools back up and running.
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