On the eve of the reopening of Villages town squares, nine more local residents lost their battle with COVID-19 and new cases continued to be reported in and around the mega-retirement community.
Four of the latest fatalities lived in Lake County and five were residents of Marion County, though information about three of them wasn’t provided Sunday by the Florida Department of Health. The fatalities were identified as:
- 65-year-old Lake County man who tested positive July 20;
- 64-year-old Lake County man who tested positive Aug. 11;
- 74-year-old Lake County man who tested positive Aug. 14;
- 70-year-old Lake County woman who tested positive Aug. 19;
- 79-year-old Marion County woman who tested positive July 31; and
- 73-year-old Marion County woman who tested positive Aug. 17.
All three of the town squares in The Villages are scheduled to reopen Monday night with limited capacities – those attending are required to have tickets – and numerous safety protocols in place. On the eve of those long-awaited reopenings, 22 new COVID-19 cases were reported in and around The Villages. Those include:
- The Villages (Sumter, Lake and Marion counties) up five for a total of 672;
- Leesburg up eight for a total of 1,275;
- Lady Lake up five for a total of 309;
- Fruitland Park up two for a total of 160;
- Oxford up one for a total of 134; and
- Summerfield up one for a total of 389.
Sumter County is now reporting 2,446 cases – an increase of eight from Saturday to Sunday – among 1,343 men, 1,081 women, 10 non-residents and 12 people listed as unknown. A total of 202 cases have been reported in long-term care centers and 621 in correctional facilities. There have been 73 deaths and 257 people treated in area hospitals.
The Villages continues to pace Sumter County with 629 cases. Besides those in Oxford mentioned above, others have been identified in Coleman (533), Wildwood (419), Bushnell (307, 139 of which are at the Sumter Correctional Institution among 103 inmates and 36 staff members), Webster (91), Lake Panasoffkee (82), Center Hill (51), Sumterville (44) and the Lady Lake portion of the county (40). The federal prison in Coleman also is reporting 223 cases among 114 inmates and 109 staff members.
Below is a breakdown of other COVID-19 activity in the local area:
TRI-COUNTY AREA
- Cases: 20,077 – increase of 72
- Men: 8,922
- Women: 10,933
- Non-residents: 81
- People listed as unknown: 141
- Deaths: 573
- Hospitalizations: 1,858
LAKE COUNTY
- Cases: 7,693 – increase of 42
- Men: 3,550
- Women: 3,976
- Non-residents: 53
- People listed as unknown: 114
- Cases in long-term care facilities: 629
- Cases in correctional facilities: 267
- Deaths: 197
- Hospitalizations: 617
- Cities with most cases: Clermont (1,926), Leesburg (1,275), Tavares (741), Eustis (611) and Mount Dora (603). The Villages also is reporting 38 cases.
MARION COUNTY
- Cases: 9,938 – increase of 22
- Men: 4,029
- Women: 5,876
- Non-residents: 18
- People listed as unknown: 15
- Cases in long-term care facilities: 1,025
- Cases in correctional facilities: 2,228
- Deaths: 303
- Hospitalizations: 984
- Cities with most cases: Ocala (7,675), Summerfield (389), Belleview (359), Dunnellon (331) and Citra (190). The Villages is reporting five cases. A total of 1,419 cases also have been reported among inmates (1,318) and staff members (101) at Lowell Correctional Institution and Marion Correctional Institution.
All told, Florida is reporting 716,459 COVID-19 cases – an increase of 1,844 from Saturday to Sunday. Of those, 707,751 are residents. A total of 47,443 cases have been reported in long-term care centers and 23,164 in correctional facilities. Across the state, there have been 14,845 deaths and 44,709 people have been hospitalized.
