Beshear reports one new coronavirus death on Saturday
By TOM LATEK, Kentucky Today
FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) — An increase in new cases of the coronavirus but a drop in deaths, were reported by Gov. Andy Beshear on Saturday.
He said there were 316 newly reported cases to state health officials, bringing the pandemic total to at least 15,167 coronavirus cases in Kentucky.
“This virus is not going away yet,” Beshear said. “We see numbers spiking in states all across the country. We need to be vigilant so that doesn’t happen here in Kentucky.”
The one new death on Saturday, a 78-year old woman from Fayette County, raises the total to 554 Kentuckians lost to the virus.
“Today, we are grieving with this woman’s family,” said Gov. Beshear. “This is another life gone too soon, after we’ve lost far too many already. We must continue to take the steps to protect each other.”
As of Saturday afternoon, there have been at least 391,765 coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky. At least 3,730 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.
“Since we first started fighting this virus nearly four months ago, Kentuckians have risen to the challenge,” Beshear stated. “We still have a long way to go, but our progress shows the enormous strength and resilience of our people.”
He also reminded Kentuckians that on Friday, Department for Public Health Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack warned Kentuckians that air quality in the state may be poor this weekend and into next week. An enormous cloud of dry and dusty air that originated over the Sahara Desert will move across the southern United States over the next three to seven days.
“We absolutely need to be cautious this weekend and next week, monitor the air quality index in our area, and if needed, limit our time outside,” the Governor said. “We’ve already shown that we can come together to fight a global pandemic for months, so I know we can take the steps needed to protect ourselves and our loved ones over one week.”
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration regarding the coronavirus pandemic at kycovid19.ky.gov.
