Health Dept. reports an alarming jump in coronavirus cases on S.I.; deaths, hospitalizations rise

New coronavirus cases soar on Staten Island and in city; deaths, hospitalizations also rise

Staten Island, on Jan. 5, 2021, marked one of its highest one-day increases in new coronavirus cases during the pandemic.(Staten Island Advance/Tom Wrobleski)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Just over 500 new coronavirus (COVID-19) cases were recorded on Staten Island in the past 24 hours, making it one of the highest single-day increases in infections here since the pandemic struck late last winter, city Health Department data shows.

At the same time, the five boroughs logged nearly 4,000 new coronavirus cases from Monday into Tuesday.

Suspected COVID-19 fatalities on Staten Island also rose, as did hospitalizations.

As of 1 p.m. Tuesday, 32,699 confirmed infections have been recorded on Staten Island since March, according to the most recent data available.

That figure marked a spike of 501 new cases from Monday afternoon’s reported total of 32,198 cases.

A Health Department source has said all data is preliminary, subject to change and can reflect lags in collection.

Also, as of Tuesday afternoon, 1,301 borough residents are believed to have succumbed to the coronavirus.

The fatalities include 1,104 Staten Islanders with confirmed COVID-19 cases, up six from Monday, according to the most recent data available.

In addition to the confirmed deaths, 197 fatalities were in the “probable” category, an uptick of one.

A death is classified as “probable” if the decedent was a city resident who had no known positive laboratory test for the coronavirus, but the death certificate lists “COVID-19” or an equivalent as a cause of death.

According to city Health Department data, the vast majority of confirmed coronavirus deaths in the five boroughs occurred in individuals with underlying medical issues.

Those conditions can include lung disease, asthma, heart disease, a weakened immune system, obesity, diabetes, kidney disease, liver disease and cancer.

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Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus patients being treated in the borough’s two hospital systems increased by five.

On Tuesday morning, 254 patients were being cared for. There had been 249 patients on Monday.

Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) was treating 194 patients on Tuesday, including those at the newly-reopened emergency field hospital on the grounds of South Beach Psychiatric Center in Ocean Breeze, said Jillian O’Hara, a spokeswoman.

That figure marked an increase of four from 24 hours earlier.

Richmond University Medical Center was caring for 60 patients, up one from Monday, Alex Lutz, a spokesman, said.

Across the five boroughs, 400,460 confirmed coronavirus cases have been recorded as of Tuesday afternoon.

That number represents a jump of 3,956 from Monday’s total of 396,504.

Citywide, the suspected coronavirus death tally has reached 25,309.

The overall fatality tally consists of 20,483 individuals who were confirmed coronavirus cases.

There were 4,826 others whose deaths were deemed as “probable” COVID-19 cases.

With respect to testing, the data shows 6,867 of every 100,000 Staten Islanders have received positive results for the coronavirus, according to 2018 Census data projections and the Health Department’s Tuesday afternoon tally.

Staten Island’s infection rate is the highest, per capita, among the five boroughs.

Officials, however, stress the examinations do not necessarily reflect the full spread of the virus.

The Bronx’s infection rate is second highest.

In that borough, 5,617 residents per 100,000 have tested positive. The Bronx has had 80,437 confirmed cases.

Queens has the third-highest rate of confirmed coronavirus cases in the city with 5,128 residents per 100,000 testing positive. There have been 116,862 cases in that borough, the second-most populous.

Brooklyn, the borough with the largest population, has the fourth-lowest rate of infection per 100,000 residents — 4,458.

However, Brooklyn’s 115,146 cases are the second most among the five boroughs, behind Queens.

Manhattan has the lowest infection rate in the city with 3,395 per 100,000 residents testing positive.

There have been 55,289 positive cases in Manhattan, the data said.

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