COVID CRUSH

Florida Reports More Than 10,000 New Coronavirus Infections in a Single Day, Setting a New Record

Despite surging cases, the state’s governor said prior lockdown restrictions would not return.

Florida has reported its highest-ever daily jump in confirmed coronavirus cases. According to data from Johns Hopkins University, 10,109 new infections brought the state’s case total to 169,106 on Thursday. Despite earlier efforts to curb the rate of transmission, the virus is surging across the country, especially in California, Texas, and Arizona. The U.S. reported its biggest nationwide increase as well, more than 50,000. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said the state will not implement the stricter lockdown measures that were in place until May despite the possibility that the July 4th holiday weekend poses increased risk as people travel. So far, 3,617 people have died from COVID-19 in the state. “We're not going back, closing things,” DeSantis told CNN. “I mean, people going to business is not what's driving it. I think when you see the younger folks, I think a lot of it is just more social interactions and so that's natural.”