Brookline Coronavirus Cases Edge Close To 350

BROOKLINE, MA —The number of residents who tested positive for the coronavirus ticked slightly up to 349 as of Tuesday, and some 44 people had died, according to the town.

Brookline is among the top 50 hardest hit in the commonwealth when it comes to the raw number of people who test positive for the coronavirus, according to the weekly accounts from the state. Out of 294 towns and 57 cities in the commonwealth, neighboring Boston had the most cases, followed by Worcester and Brockton. Newton had the 28th highest number of positive cases in the state as of May 20, the last day the state released those numbers. Waltham had the 13th highest number of cases and Cambridge dropped from number 17 to 19 last week.

Neighboring Newton some 740 people had tested positive for the virus as of May 25, the latest data available and at least 105 people had died according to that city. In Waltham, some 1,116 people had tested positive for the virus as of Tuesday and 64 had died.

The Department of Public Health said Tuesday there were only 422 new cases that day, bringing the state's total to 93,693. There were also 57 more deaths reported, meaning 6,473 lives have been lost due to the coronavirus. The daily fatalities have remained under 100 for six straight days, pointing to a positive trend.

Last week Gov. Charlie Baker outlined the state's plans to have a phased reopening for businesses. He and health officials stressed the need to continue to maintain distancing of at least 6 feet from others in public and to wear a mask — even outdoors when that wasn't possible — and sanitization protocols to avoid a severe second wave of the virus across the state.

Read more:

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• Boston College To Resume In-Person Classes This Fall
• 53-Year-Old Tortoise Homeless After Owner Dies Of Virus

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).Have a press release you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how to post a press release, opinion piece.