As infections surge, officials find non-compliant bars in downtown Orlando and near UCF

COVID-19 cases surged across Central Florida on Monday with the rate of infections climbing toward double-digits again as officials warned bars aren’t following safety precautions and urged people to keep Thanksgiving gatherings small.

The positivity rates in Orange, Seminole, Lake and Osceola counties are now at least 7% or higher. At the beginning of October all four counties were hovering at about 5% or below, a level of patients considered manageable for local hospitals.

In Orange County alone, the state reported on Monday more than 1,400 cases this Friday, Saturday and Sunday, nearly double the total from the weekend before. And for the seven-day period ending Sunday, 8.52% of tests were positive, the highest weekly rate here since the last week in July.

Dr. Raul Pino, the health officer for the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, said Saturday’s data included three days of results from one of the labs, which skewed that day’s numbers, but not enough to dismiss the results.

Read more: https://www.orlandosentinel.com/coronavirus/os-ne-coronavirus-orange-update-nov16-20201116-tcnj56nqvratdcv222bndgrin4-story.html