Pointing to a spate of health order violations at businesses over the Super Bowl and Presidents Day weekends, Los Angeles County health officials said Thursday they remain concerned that another spike in COVID- 19 cases could be on the horizon, despite recent downward trends in case numbers and hospitalizations.
According to the county Department of Public Health, inspectors found a series of violations at restaurants over the past two weekends, including some that were offering indoor dining, some that were overcrowded with tables closer than eight feet and some that had televisions on despite a requirement that they be turned off or removed from customer seating areas.
“As everyone knows who is sick with COVID-19 or worrying about a loved one in the hospital infected with the virus, we are not out of the woods yet,” Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement. “With almost 3,000 people testing positive still, community transmission remains high. It is so important residents and businesses continue to follow the guidance and directives in the Health Officer Order so that our recovery journey continues as we slow the spread of the virus.
“Each day more and more people are vaccinated and if we diligently adhere to the public health safety measures while increasing vaccinations, we can get to the end of this pandemic and save many more lives,” she said.
There are 2,757 people currently in the hospital in Los Angeles County according to county health officials. That’s 98 fewer people in the hospital than on Wednesday when there were 2,855 people hospitalized.
The county’s all-time high for COVID hospitalizations occurred on Jan. 7, when there were 8,098 people hospitalized.
There are currently 808 people in the ICU, according to the state.
County health officials announced 153 more COVID-related deaths on Thursday. The county’s cumulative death toll is now 19,514 people.
The highest number of COVID deaths in a single day in the county is 318 deaths, recorded on Jan. 8, while the second highest is 316 deaths, which occurred on Jan. 30.
LA County reported 2,873 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday. The county now has a cumulative total of 1,174,340 cases since the pandemic began in March.
To date, almost 5.73 million people have been tested for the coronavirus since the pandemic began.
West Hollywood recorded 7 new cases for a cumulative total of 2,063 cases since the pandemic began. The city had one new death; the cumulative death total is 28 deaths.
Below are the numbers for areas near West Hollywood:
- Beverly Hills – 10 new cases for a total of 2,396 cases and 28 deaths.
- Carthay neighborhood – 5 new cases for a total of 861 cases and 51 deaths.
- Century City – 2 new cases for a total of 558 cases and 12 deaths.
- Culver City – 2 new cases for a total of 2,029 cases and 77 deaths.
- Hollywood – 19 new cases for a total of 5,074 cases and 56 deaths.
- Melrose neighborhood – 23 new cases total of 7,627 cases and 183 deaths.
- Miracle Mile – 3 new cases for a total of 873 cases and 14 deaths.
- Park La Brea – 1 new case for a total of 541 cases and 1 death.
- Santa Monica – 15 new cases for a total of 4,198 cases and 130 deaths.
The Carthay neighborhood incorporates the areas of Los Angeles between the Beverly Hills city limits and Fairfax Avenue, with Beverly Boulevard as the northern border and Wilshire Boulevard as the southern border.
The Melrose neighborhood incorporates the areas of Los Angeles east of La Cienega and west of Vermont Avenue, between Santa Monica Boulevard on the north and Beverly Boulevard on the south.
For information about the many resources available to West Hollywood residents who have been impacted by COVID-19, CLICK HERE.
