A whopping 63 new deaths were reported from COVID-19 in the tri-county area on Saturday, marking the largest number of fatalities reported in a single day since the deadly virus was first identified in Florida in March.
It’s unclear if all of those deaths happened in the past day or if there has been a lag in reporting fatality numbers of the part of the Florida Department of Health. That agency has in the past run behind in reporting statistics in several categories, including the number of vaccinations given across the Sunshine State, so it’s possible that some of the latest victims have died over the past week or longer.
Thirty of the latest fatalities were reported in Sumter County, which is home to the vast majority of residences in The Villages. Another 28 were reported in Lake County and five were identified in Marion County. Those fatalities are among the 1,067 reported across the tri-county area, the 24,380 in Florida and the 393,264 across the country.
All told, Florida is reporting 1,560,186 cases – an increase of 12,119 from Friday to Saturday. Of those, 1,531,830 are residents. A total of 71,210 cases have been reported in long-term care centers and 28,187 in correctional facilities. Across the state, 67,790 people have been hospitalized.
Locally, 138 new COVID-19 cases were reported Saturday in and around The Villages. Those include:
- The Villages (Sumter, Lake and Marion counties) up 51 for a total of 3,034;
- Leesburg up 32 for a total of 3,093;
- Lady Lake up 22 for a total of 1,121;
- Summerfield up 11 for a total of 1,355;
- Oxford up 7 for a total of 377;
- Belleview up 7 for a total of 919;
- Fruitland Park up 5 for a total of 513;
- Wildwood up 3 for a total of 781.
Below is a breakdown of other COVID-19 activity in the local area:
TRI-COUNTY AREA
- Cases: 47,601 – increase of 586
- Deaths: 1,067
- Hospitalizations: 2,953
SUMTER COUNTY
- Cases: 6,363 – increase of 98
- Deaths: 156
- Hospitalizations: 423
- Areas/cities with most cases: The Villages (2,845), Coleman (807), Wildwood (781), Bushnell (688) and Oxford (377).
LAKE COUNTY
- Cases: 19,208 – increase of 246
- Deaths: 377
- Hospitalizations: 1,080
- Cities with most cases: Clermont (5,009), Leesburg (3,093), Eustis (1,673), Mount Dora (1,456) and Tavares (1,410). The Villages also is reporting 127 cases.
MARION COUNTY
- Cases: 22,030 – increase of 242
- Deaths: 534
- Hospitalizations: 1,450
- Cities with most cases: Ocala (16,215), Summerfield (1,355), Dunnellon (982), Belleview (919) and Citra (383). The Villages also is reporting 62 cases.
