Kansas sees surge of nearly 6,000 new COVID-19 cases over weekend; 15 new deaths
The number of people infected with COVID-19 jumped up by nearly 6,000 cases over the weekend in Kansas, according to data released by health officials on Monday.
The number of Kansans infected by the coronavirus grew to a total of 103,553, up 5,920 new cases, or 6%, from Friday’s total of 97,633, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
An additional 15 people died from COVID-19 complications, bringing the total number of people who have died from the disease to 1,181 statewide. An additional 71 people were hospitalized since Friday.
“Today’s case numbers, combined with the staffing and capacity issues hospitals are currently facing, is terrifying to me and to those working in public health,” Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Lee Norman said last Friday on Twitter. “If you are sick, please stay home and contact your healthcare provider.”
In Johnson County, the number of people who have tested positive for COVID-19 cases grew by 346 cases, up from 16,873 cases reported Sunday to 17,219 cases on Monday, according to local health officials. There were two additional deaths reported, bringing the total number of people dying to 235.
In Wyandotte County, the number of people who had tested positive for the disease was 8,852 on Sunday, up 80 new cases from the 8,772 cases reported on Saturday, according to the health officials update on Sunday. The county reported one additional death on Sunday, bringing the total number of people in the county dying to 167.
The upswing in cases comes as Kansas City area hospitals are being hard hit by COVID-19. The disease killed eight people, on average, every day in the Kansas City metro last week. Two days in a row, more than 1,000 new cases were reported in the metro, with 5,100 total added last week.
This story was originally published November 9, 2020 at 2:00 PM.
