Nevada reports single-day record for COVID-19 deaths

Nevada on Thursday reported 62 new fatalities from the coronavirus, setting a single-day record just eight days after breaking the previous record.

The deaths brought the cumulative number of coronavirus fatalities in the state to 3,658, according to data posted to the Department of Health and Human Services’ website. The previous high mark came on Jan. 6, when 60 deaths were reported.

The fatalities were well above the moving 14-day daily average of 21, according to the state data.

The state data also shows that the two-week daily average of deaths has been declining steadily since it reached a high of 35 on Dec. 23. The state redistributes data after daily total announcements to better reflect the date of death, which at times causes the trendlines to diverge from daily reports.

The state also reported 2,187 new coronavirus cases, well above the two-week moving daily average of 1,735 and down by 24 from the previous day.

Data guide: COVID-19’s impact on Nevada

The updated figures brought COVID-19 case totals in the state to 256,172.

The state’s COVID-19 response director, Caleb Cage, said Wednesday that the daily tally for new cases was artificially low due to delayed laboratory reporting and predicted the numbers would surge on Thursday. The same issue was announcd by the Southern Nevada Health District, but the agency said death figures were not affected by delayed reports.

The state’s two-week positivity rate, which essentially tracks the percentage of people tested who are diagnosed with the disease, reached 21.6 percent, a 0.1-percentage-point increase from the previous day.

The number of people hospitalized with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases decreased by 38 to 1,746, the state data show. Clark County alone had 1,482 hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

Data from the Nevada Hospital Association showed that Southern Nevada hospitals showed 84 percent of staffed beds were occupied, while intensive care unit beds were at 81 percent of capacity.

The health district, meanwhile, reported 1,914 new cases in and 46 additional fatalities in Clark County.

The updated figures, which are reflected in the state reporting, brought totals in the county to 196,134 cases and 2,762 deaths.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.