ATLANTA — Here is the latest on the coronavirus for April 4th.
Below is an archive for April 3
==
The Georgia Department of Health announced new cases of COVID-19 on Friday. As of 7 p.m., there are now 5,967 confirmed cases of the virus and just under 200 deaths reported. Scroll to see more.
At 11Alive News, our coverage of the coronavirus is rooted in Facts, not Fear. Visit the 11Alive coronavirus page for comprehensive coverage, find out what you need to know about Georgia specifically, learn more about the symptoms, and keep tabs on the cases around the world here. Have a question? Text it to us at 404-885-7600.
State and federal officials with the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are continually monitoring the spread of the virus. They are also working hand-in-hand with the World Health Organization to track the spread around the world and to stop it.
We will continue to track the most important coronavirus elements relating to Georgia on this page. Refresh often for new information.
Key Facts:
- 198 deaths from the novel coronavirus in Georgia
- 5,967 confirmed cases across the state
- Statewide shelter-in-place order in effect until April 13
- Gov. Kemp has ordered all public schools in the state to close through the end of the school year
- Public Health Emergency remains in effect
Confirmed cases now at 5,967 with 198 deaths
The Georgia Department of Health announced new cases of COVID-19 on Friday. As of 7 p.m., there are now 5,967 confirmed cases of the virus and 198 deaths reported. There are now 1,222 people hospitalized from the virus.
The virus has exploded in Fulton County, where the number of confirmed cases is fast approaching the 1000 mark with 26 deaths. Dougherty County is now reporting more than 600 cases with 30 deaths.
Meanwhile, the number of cases continues to grow in the metro Atlanta area. DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett and Clayton counties are all reporting several hundreds of cases.
Here's a county-by-county breakdown:
County - Cases - Deaths
Fulton 910 26
Dougherty 607 30
DeKalb 483 8
Cobb 422 20
Gwinnett 353 8
Clayton 206 8
Bartow 159 6
Carroll 147 2
Henry 143 3
Lee 123 8
Cherokee 114 5
Hall 81 0
Floyd 79 3
Douglas 78 4
Rockdale 67 2
Sumter 67 4
Chatham 65 3
Early 61 1
Fayette 61 4
Forsyth 61 1
Clarke 59 8
Houston 58 5
Coweta 56 2
Terrell 50 2
Richmond 49 1
Mitchell 46 1
Paulding 46 0
Colquitt 44 3
Newton 42 1
Bibb 34 1
Tift 34 0
Columbia 33 0
Worth 33 1
Lowndes 32 1
Muscogee 31 0
Troup 30 1
Thomas 26 0
Crisp 24 0
Glynn 23 0
Spalding 23 1
Barrow 22 2
Gordon 21 2
Oconee 21 0
Polk 18 0
Ware 17 3
Decatur 16 0
Pierce 16 0
Walton 16 0
Bryan 15 1
Coffee 15 0
Laurens 15 0
Whitfield 15 1
Dawson 13 0
Jackson 13 0
Dooly 12 0
Greene 12 0
Turner 12 0
Baldwin 11 1
Calhoun 11 1
Miller 11 0
Randolph 11 0
Haralson 10 0
Meriwether 10 0
Peach 10 1
Butts 9 0
Liberty 9 0
Pickens 9 1
Burke 8 0
Fannin 8 0
Seminole 8 0
Upson 8 0
Clay 7 0
Lumpkin 7 0
Madison 7 1
Monroe 7 0
Murray 7 0
Bacon 6 0
Camden 6 0
Catoosa 6 0
Effingham 6 0
Harris 6 0
Irwin 6 0
Jones 6 0
Lamar 6 0
Appling 5 0
Brooks 5 0
Bulloch 5 0
Dodge 5 0
Franklin 5 0
Lincoln 5 0
Mcduffie 5 1
Pulaski 5 0
Schley 5 0
Stephens 5 0
Toombs 5 1
Washington 5 0
Baker 4 1
Pike 4 0
Warren 4 0
Banks 3 0
Ben Hill 3 0
Berrien 3 0
Chattooga 3 0
Grady 3 0
Hart 3 0
Talbot 3 0
Tattnall 3 0
Walker 3 0
White 3 0
Wilkes 3 0
Chattahoochee 2 0
Clinch 2 0
Habersham 2 0
Heard 2 1
Jasper 2 0
Jefferson 2 0
Jenkins 2 0
Macon 2 0
Mcintosh 2 0
Morgan 2 0
Putnam 2 0
Rabun 2 0
Screven 2 0
Taylor 2 0
Telfair 2 0
Twiggs 2 0
Bleckley 1 0
Candler 1 0
Charlton 1 0
Cook 1 0
Dade 1 1
Elbert 1 0
Emanuel 1 0
Gilmer 1 0
Johnson 1 0
Lanier 1 0
Long 1 0
Marion 1 0
Oglethorpe 1 1
Quitman 1 0
Stewart 1 0
Towns 1 0
Union 1 0
Webster 1 0
Wheeler 1 0
Wilcox 1 0
Wilkinson 1 0
Unknown 264 4
Georgia World Congress Center a potential temporary hospital
The Georgia World Congress Center is being considered as a potential temporary hospital as state officials say a surge in COVID-19 patients in coming weeks could exceed existing health care facilities, reports the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
47 long-term care facilities in Georgia have COVID-19 outbreaks
The Georgia Department of Public Health said on Friday that 47 long-term care facilities in the state have COVID-19 outbreaks.
They said information about residents and/or staff who are infected will not be released. They did not specify how many cases at each facility.
These are the facilities with outbreaks, they said:
Facility Name City County
Maple Ridge - Cartersville - Bartow
Townsend Park - Cartersville - Bartow
Zebulon Park Health and Rehab - Macon - Bibb
Pruitt Health Eastside - Macon - Bibb
Fellowship Home - Valdosta - Brooks
Pine Knoll - Carrollton - Carroll
Cottage Landing - Carrollton - Carroll
Oaks at Towne Lake - Woodstock - Cherokee
Legacy Ridge At Neese Road - Woodstock - Cherokee
Benton House - Woodstock - Cherokee
Retreat at Canton - Canton - Cherokee
Riverdale - Riverdale - Clayton
Delmar Gardens of Smyrna* - Smyrna - Cobb
Canterfield of Kennesaw - Kennesaw - Cobb
Powder Springs Transitional Care and Rehab - Powder Springs - Cobb
Marietta Life Center - Marietta - Cobb
Greenwood Place - Marietta - Cobb
Signature Healthcare - Marietta - Cobb
Pruitt Health Grandview - Athens - Clarke
Rosemont at Stone Mountain - Stone Mountain - DeKalb
ManorCare Rehab Center - Decatur - DeKalb
King's Bridge Retirement Center - Atlanta - DeKalb
Berman Commons - Dunwoody - DeKalb
Park Springs - Stone Mountain - DeKalb
Sandy Springs Health & Rehab - Sandy Springs - DeKalb
Orchard at Brookhaven - Brookhaven - DeKalb
Pruitt Health of Brookhaven - Atlanta - DeKalb
Budd Terrace, Wesley Woods - Atlanta - DeKalb
Pruitt Health Palmyra - Albany - Dougherty
Douglasville Nursing and Rehab - Douglasville - Douglas
Heartis Fayetteville - Fayetteville - Fayette
Gardens of Fayetteville Fayetteville Fayette
Rome Health & Rehab - Rome - Floyd
Mann House Assisted Living - Cumming - Forsyth
Arbor Terrace At Cascade - Atlanta - Fulton
Lenbrook - Atlanta - Fulton
Sadie Mays Health & Rehab - Atlanta - Fulton
Parkside Acute and Rehab - Snellville - Gwinnett
Glancy Rehab-Northside Gwinnett - Duluth - Gwinnett
Cambridge Care - Snellville - Gwinnett
Benton House of Grayson - Grayson - Gwinnett
Discovery Village of Sugarloaf - Suwannee - Gwinnett
Pruitt Health Crestwood - Valdosta - Lowndes
Pelham Parkway - Pelham - Mitchell
Dawson Health and Rehab - Dawson - Terrell
LaGrange Nursing & Rehab - LaGrange - Troup
Miller County Nursing Home - Colquitt - Wayne
*Editor's Note: The Delmar Gardens of Smyrna wished to clarify to 11Alive that their case came from an independent living resident.
University dorms to become housing for traveling healthcare workers
The University System of Georgia (USG), in partnership with Gov. Brian Kemp and the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, will offer temporary housing to traveling nurses assisting at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital in Albany.
Albany State University will provide rooms for the nurses in one residence hall, which were closed last month following Kemp’s declaration of a statewide public health emergency due to COVID-19.
The effort comes as the City of Albany and its surrounding communities battle a surge in COVID-19 cases. Governor Kemp recently deployed medical support teams to Albany from the Georgia National Guard to provide support to the Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital medical staff.
The on-campus housing allocated for healthcare providers will be in one residence hall and separate from units currently occupied by the few students authorized to remain on campus.
USG’s 26 institutions, including Albany State, are currently delivering online instruction through the summer semester. While institutions have remained open, only minimal staff is physically on-site to ensure continuity of certain services.
Forsyth County moving forward with rescheduled graduations
The Class of 2020 can start looking forward to a "normal" graduation, even if it won't be at the normal time.
In a letter to high school seniors, Forsyth County Schools superintendent Dr. Jeff Bearden announced that the county is planning to hold in-person graduations to celebrate the students in July, once the stay-at-home and social distancing restrictions are, presumably, lifted.
Gov. Kemp authorizes sheriffs to close businesses to enforce stay-at-home order
Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive order Friday authorizing sheriffs to close businesses as part of enforcing his statewide shelter-in-place order.
The order says "sheriffs have uniquely positioned law enforcement officers who can assist in the State's response to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19" and will be "authorized to enforce the closure of businesses, establishments, corporations, non-profit corporations or organizations in accordance" with the order.
The order adds that sheriffs "should take reasonable steps to provide notice and a reasonable time to allow" businesses and other organizations "the opportunity to comply with directions from sheriffs or their deputies prior to mandating closure."
The governor's order is set to take effect at 6 p.m. this evening.
Confirmed cases now at 5,831 with 184 deaths
The Georgia Department of Health announced new cases of COVID-19 on Friday. As of Noon, there are 5,831 confirmed cases of the virus and 184 deaths reported. This is up from the 5,444 confirmed cases and 176 deaths that they announced on Thursday evening.
Of the 5,831 confirmed cases, 882 are in Fulton, 448 are in DeKalb, 560 are in Dougherty, 381 are in Cobb and 329 are in Gwinnett. In all, there are cases reported in 147 counties (507 cases are listed as unknown counties). For a breakdown by county, view the 11Alive interactive map.
They said 1,158 patients are hospitalized with COVID-19.
Of the confirmed cases, 1 percent are between the ages of 0-17, while 59 percent are 18-59 years old, 36 percent are over 60 and 4 percent are unknown. 49 percent are female, and 48 percent are male.
In total, 22,960 tests were conducted at commercial labs, reporting 5,428 positive cases. At the Department of Public Health Laboratory, 2,305 tests were conducted with 403 positive results.
County - Cases - Deaths
Fulton 882 23
Dougherty 560 30
Dekalb 448 8
Cobb 381 18
Gwinnett 329 8
Clayton 195 6
Bartow 154 3
Carroll 143 2
Henry 125 3
Lee 115 8
Cherokee 104 5
Hall 79 0
Floyd 77 2
Douglas 71 4
Rockdale 63 2
Forsyth 60 1
Sumter 59 3
Chatham 58 3
Fayette 58 4
Clarke 57 8
Coweta 53 2
Houston 53 5
Richmond 50 1
Terrell 50 2
Early 48 1
Mitchell 43 1
Paulding 42 0
Newton 40 1
Colquitt 34 2
Bibb 32 1
Columbia 32 0
Muscogee 30 0
Tift 30 0
Worth 30 1
Lowndes 28 1
Troup 26 1
Crisp 23 0
Glynn 23 0
Spalding 23 1
Barrow 21 2
Gordon 21 2
Oconee 19 0
Thomas 17 0
Polk 16 0
Walton 16 0
Ware 16 2
Coffee 15 0
Laurens 15 0
Whitfield 15 1
Pierce 14 0
Dawson 13 0
Bryan 12 1
Decatur 12 0
Dooly 12 0
Jackson 12 0
Turner 12 0
Baldwin 10 1
Calhoun 10 1
Meriwether 10 0
Butts 9 0
Greene 9 0
Peach 9 1
Pickens 9 1
Burke 8 0
Fannin 8 0
Randolph 8 0
Clay 7 0
Haralson 7 0
Harris 7 0
Liberty 7 0
Lumpkin 7 0
Murray 7 0
Bacon 6 0
Camden 6 0
Catoosa 6 0
Effingham 6 0
Irwin 6 0
Jones 6 0
Lamar 6 0
Monroe 6 0
Pulaski 6 0
Seminole 6 0
Upson 6 0
Washington 6 0
Brooks 5 0
Bulloch 5 0
Dodge 5 0
Franklin 5 0
Lincoln 5 0
Madison 5 1
Mcduffie 5 1
Miller 5 0
Stephens 5 0
Toombs 5 1
Baker 4 1
Schley 4 0
Warren 4 0
Appling 3 0
Banks 3 0
Ben Hill 3 0
Berrien 3 0
Chattooga 3 0
Grady 3 0
Hart 3 0
Pike 3 0
Tattnall 3 0
Walker 3 0
White 3 0
Wilkes 3 0
Chattahoochee 2 0
Clinch 2 0
Habersham 2 0
Heard 2 1
Jasper 2 0
Jefferson 2 0
Jenkins 2 0
Macon 2 0
Mcintosh 2 0
Morgan 2 0
Putnam 2 0
Rabun 2 0
Screven 2 0
Talbot 2 0
Taylor 2 0
Telfair 2 0
Twiggs 2 0
Wilcox 2 0
Bleckley 1 0
Candler 1 0
Charlton 1 0
Cook 1 0
Dade 1 1
Elbert 1 0
Emanuel 1 0
Gilmer 1 0
Johnson 1 0
Lanier 1 0
Long 1 0
Marion 1 0
Oglethorpe 1 1
Quitman 1 0
Stewart 1 0
Towns 1 0
Union 1 0
Webster 1 0
Wheeler 1 0
Wilkinson 1 0
Unknown 507 4
National Guard troops clean senior facility in metro Atlanta
National Guard troops cleaned a senior living facility in Brookhaven on Thursday night, part of Gov. Brian Kemp's order to use the troops to help in the coronavirus response at long-term care facilities, assisted living facilities and nursing homes.
The troops performed the service at the Orchard at Brookhaven facility.
A message to residents said the cleaning was expected to involve 20 troops working for about six hours. The cleaning was done while residents were asleep, the message said.
MARTA service changes
MARTA has posted this notice on its website, notifying the public that with fewer and fewer people using the services, it will be scaling back its schedules:
"Due to a significant reduction in ridership, MARTA has implemented service modifications impacting bus, rail, and streetcar operations. Rail service is operating on a Sunday schedule, starting at 5 a.m. Bus service is operating on modified weekday schedules, which are available at https://www.itsmarta.com/bus-routes.aspx. Streetcar service is operating on a Sunday schedule. Thank you for your continued support, as MARTA strives to provide essential transit service. To learn more, please visit https://www.itsmarta.com/MARTA-service-modifications.aspx."
Things to know on Friday
- Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's statewide shelter-in-place order will go into effect today. It is scheduled to last 10 days, ending on April 13. Here's everything you need to know about it.
- The order also closes public schools for in-person instruction through the rest of the school year. Here's what it says.
- What will still be open? Here is a list of critical industries exempted under the order.
- Georgia Department of Labor says it processed more than 130,000 claims last week, an 1,100% spike, as new claims nationally reach 10 million over the last two weeks
MORE CORONAVIRUS HEADLINES