By Matt Arco | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
New Jersey’s total known cases of the coronavirus increased to at least 6,876 with 81 deaths as officials announced another 2,492 new positive test results Thursday, by far the largest single-day increase since the outbreak.
“Sadly the number of lost lives is going up,” Gov. Phil Murphy said at the Trenton War Memorial during the latest press briefing. “That’s partly due to some community spread.”
Murphy announced 19 new deaths from coronavirus. The details were not immediately available. New Jersey ranks second in the nation for coronavirus cases after New York.
Of the 2,492 new cases reported Thursday, Murphy said 436 came directly from the two state-run mass testing sites at Bergen Community College and the PNC Bank Arts Center in Monmouth County
| LOCATION | CASES | DEATHS |
|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 6,876 | 81 |
| New York State | 37,258 | 385 |
| New York City | 20,000 | 280 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,127 | 11 |
| Philadelphia | 342 | 1 |
| United States | 69,246 | 1,046 |
| Worldwide | 492,600 | 22,184 |
Note: Data includes confirmed and presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 reported by the CDC, state health officials and other health agencies since Jan. 21. Updated: March 26 at 2:05 p.m..Table: Len Melisurgo Source: Johns Hopkins Univ., Gov. Cuomo, NBC4, State Health Departments in NJ, NY, PAGet the data
The figures come a day after state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said hospitals in Bergen, Essex and Hudson counties were already feeling the strain of cases and the state continues to work on models predicting when the peak will occur. She said the coronavirus peak in those hard-hit New Jersey counties could be three weeks away.
“We’ve asked the hospitals and the health care providers in those counties to just be aware,” Persichilli said on Wednesday.
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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, meanwhile, has said he expects the peak of his state’s cases to be the next 14 to 21 days. Persichilli said northern New Jersey counties are slightly behind but following that trend.
“There’s a good a possibility that they’re going to see a peak after that — probably 21 too, it could be 60 days even,” Persichilli said Wednesday. “Our exponential growth rate based on the number of positive cases reported daily is similar in northern New Jersey.”
New Jersey officials have not released the number of residents who have recovered from the COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus. It’s also possible many people who haven’t been tested are infected.
In an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus, Murphy has closed all schools in the state, ordered people to stay at home except for necessary travel, banned social gatherings, and ordered non-essential retail businesses to close until further notice. Officials have promised to prosecute those who violate the orders.
Though some commentators are pushing to restart the U.S. economy, Murphy has vowed to keep New Jersey’s restrictions in place here until science shows it’s safe.
“If we go too early, I’m fearful we will throw gasoline on the fire, and we’ll have a much bigger challenge on our hands,” he said Thursday morning during an appearance on MSNBC.
Murphy has also announced a way for workers to report companies where people who are able to do their jobs from home were told by their employers to report to the office. The governor said New Jersey employers should not be forcing their workers to go to offices if those people are able to do their jobs remotely, per his executive order.
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As of Thursday morning, the virus has infected more than 487,000 people and killed more than 22,000 people across the globe, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. Of those cases, more than 117,00 people have recovered.
Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or Facebook.
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