Sonoma County Coronavirus Peak Would've Reached 10,000: Doctor

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Sheltering at home is helping to reduce the number of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations Sonoma County can expect over the next few months, Public Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase said Wednesday afternoon.

"If we had not issued the shelter-in-place order, we would have five times more cases than we expect now. The sheltering is helping flatten the curve and allows us to plan for a surge of patients," Mase said.

Without the shelter order, the county could expect to need 10,000 hospital beds at the peak of the surge and overwhelm hospitals and health care workers, Mase said.

She said with the shelter order the county may need only 1,500 hospital beds over the next two months.

"We're in a better place because we put the shelter order in place early," Mase said.

Earlier Wednesday, the county announced a plan to locate approximately 580 hospital beds for patients with coronavirus and who have mild-to-moderate symptoms. The beds will be at an alternate care site at Sonoma State University's Recreation Center in Rohnert Park.

A residential building at the university would be used for people waiting for test results, and a separate residential housing unit would house COVID-19 vulnerable people over 65 years old and those with underlying medical conditions.

Sonoma County can expect to see the peak of the surge two to four weeks later than more populated counties, Mase said Tuesday. She believes the peak of the surge will be in late May or early June.

On Wednesday, the county had 120 confirmed cases, 81 active cases, 38 patient recoveries and one death. The county has conducted 2,791 tests for COVID-19.

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