By edhat team
The Santa Barbara County Department of Public Health reported 396 new cases of COVID-19 on the last day of 2020.
There are currently 1,456 active cases in the community. Of these, 135 are hospitalized, including 34 in the intensive care unit (ICU).
There were 3 deaths reported on Thursday. The individuals resided in the regions of Santa Bárbara and not incorporated in Mission Canyon, Lompoc and in the communities of Mission Hills and Vandenberg Village and in the city of Santa Maria. Two individuals were over 70 years old and one was between 50-69 years old. Two individuals had underlying medical conditions and one death was associated with an outbreak in a congregated facility.
There was an additional death reported on Wednesday. The individual was over 70 years old with underlying medical conditions and resided in the unincorporated areas of Vale do Goleta. The death was associated with an outbreak in a congregated facility.
There have already been 160 deaths in 2020 directly related to the COVID-19 virus.
The Department of Public Health continues to claim that most infections, and subsequently deaths, are due to people who ignore the rules and crowd out of the home. This allows the virus to spread, which is contracted by someone who cannot fight it and dies.
The availability of Santa Bárbara County ICUs is 4.4%, which means that there is a nominal amount of space available for the inevitable number of people who will become ill in the coming weeks due to non-prohibited meetings during the Christmas holidays and New Year.
Public health officials, doctors and scientists strongly recommend that everyone stay at home, wear masks and wash their hands to prevent the spread and transmission of this contagious and deadly virus.
For more information on data, visit https://publichealthsbc.org/status-reports/