Florida Surpasses 300,000 Coronavirus Cases

TALLAHASSEE, FL — The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Florida surpassed the 300,000 mark Wednesday as the superintendents of Florida's two largest school districts warned they won't be opening schools next month unless things change for the better.

"As long as the number of hospitalizations continue to increase we are not in a position of reopening schools," Miami-Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho told reporters. "It is actually counterintuitive and dangerous."

His message was echoed by Broward County Superintendent Robert Runcie, who leads the second largest district in the state.

"I am recommending that instruction will be 100 percent elearning," Runcie said. "That is the only way we can educate our students while keeping them and their teachers healthy and safe."

The total number of coronavirus cases in the state climbed to 301,810 on Wednesday, an increase of 10,181 over the previous 24-hour period.

Florida's death toll from the coronavirus rose to 4,521. Tuesday saw the deadliest one-day increase of 132 new deaths in Florida since the start of the pandemic. State officials reported another 105 deaths in Florida involving non-Florida residents.

The mayor of Florida's sixth largest city — Hialeah Mayor Carlos Hernandez — said in an interview with Patch Wednesday that he believes he was intentionally snubbed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis or a member of the governor's staff from attending a roundtable discussion with fellow Miami-Dade mayors on the coronavirus crisis.

Twenty-six Florida counties reported 113 new deaths Wednesday while Manatee County reported one fewer death.

That compares with 132 new deaths on Tuesday, 35 new deaths on Monday, 45 new deaths Sunday, 94 new deaths Saturday (health officials reported 95), 117 new deaths Friday (health officials reported 93), 120 new deaths Thursday and 49 new deaths reported last Wednesday.

Miami-Dade County reported 27 new deaths. Palm Beach County reported 10 new deaths.

Pinellas County reported 16 new deaths. Orange County reported nine new deaths. Brevard County reported six new deaths as did St. Lucie County.

Polk County reported four new deaths. Clay County reported three new deaths as did Collier County, Hillsborough County, Jackson County, Lee County and Seminole County.

Duval County reported two new deaths as did Marion County and Pasco County.

Charlotte County reported one new death as did Citrus County, Desoto County, Escambia County, Flagler County, Gadsden County, Lake County, Martin County, St. Johns County, Suwannee County and Volusia County.

Florida's latest record for new coronavirus cases was reported on Sunday with a one-day increase of 15,300 cases.

Florida had an 11 percent positive test rate for the virus Wednesday as the number of tests administered in the state reached 2,739,169.

The percentage of positive cases has been increasing for weeks, and cases have been trending younger with many of the new people testing positive between the ages of 25 to 34.

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Health officials reported 19,334 hospitalizations from 18,881 over the previous 24-hour period. That represents an increase of 453 more hospitalizations over the previous day, which is among the highest one-day increases in hospitalizations.

Miami-Dade, which includes Miami and Miami Beach, reported 72,317 cases of the virus Wednesday. Nearby Broward County, which includes Fort Lauderdale, reported 34,153 cases. Palm Beach County, which includes Palm Beach and West Palm, reported 22,788 cases.

Hillsborough County, which includes Tampa, reported 21,018 cases. Orange County, which includes Orlando, reported 19,909 cases.

In an effort to provide as much information to our readers as possible, Patch is publishing the following county-by-county breakdown of the coronavirus cases in Florida's 67 counties, along with the median age of patients, the number of hospital cases by county and the number of deaths.

Related:

• Florida Governor Behaved Like 'Spoiled Kid' Says Hialeah Mayor
• Governor Promises 'Guns Blazing' Response To Covonavirus Surge
• Brandon Coronavirus Testing Site Increases Appointments
• Medical Expert Calls Miami New World Epicenter; 12,624 More Cases
• Florida Bars Won't Reopen, But Schools Will; Cases Top 250,000
• More Residents Refusing To Participate In Contact Tracing
• Pinellas Releases Draft Back-To-School Plan, Mandates Masks

Patch updates this chart once each day based on data provided by the Florida Department of Health. The counties that reported new deaths on Wednesday are shown in bold.

Here is the most recent data: