The deaths attributed to COVID-19 in San Luis Obispo County already exceed 100 cases.
The county reported a total of 101 COVID-19-related deaths on Friday, an increase of six from the previous day.
Health officials say the recently deceased patients were between 70 and 100 years old.
In December, the municipality recorded 44 deaths attributed to COVID-19. In this week alone, 13 additional deaths have been reported.
“This virus claimed more than 100 local lives,” said Dr. Penny Borenstein, a county health officer. “They are mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, aunts and uncles, children and grandparents who were not ready to die and whose deaths were, in fact, preventable.”
County officials say the deaths of 28 more people are under investigation as potentially caused by COVID-19.
San Luis Obispo County also added 294 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, bringing the county total to 12,891 confirmed cases on January 8.
Health officials say 40 people are hospitalized, including 14 patients who are in the ICU. A further 3,072 people are recovering at home and health officials say 9,652 people have recovered.
According to the COVID-19 online panel for the state of California, there are currently 12 ICU beds available in San Luis Obispo County.
Breakdown of cases by location:
- Paso Robles – 2,701
- San Luis Obispo – 2,519
- California Men’s Colony (Inmates) – 1,214
- Atascadero – 1,176
- Arroyo Grande – 962
- Nipomo – 905
- Grover Beach – 553
- Ocean – 445
- Templeton – 395
- San Miguel – 343
- Los Osos – 295
- Morro Bay – 261
- Cal Poly (campus residents) – 256
- Pismo Beach – 201
- Atascadero State Hospital (patients) – 154
- Shandon – 107
- Santa Margarita – 93
- Cambria – 92
- Creston – 59
- Cayucos – 48
- Avila Beach – 22
- Shell Beach – 12
- San Simeon – 10
The location of 60 additional cases is under investigation and another eight are listed as “others”, which includes communities with fewer than five cases. The Department of Public Health is not identifying these locations.
The testing sites of the COVID-19 community are currently open to the public in San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, Morro Bay, Grover Beach and Nipomo.
Appointments are mandatory in all locations. Click here to schedule an appointment.
For more information on the county’s COVID-19 response, visit readyslo.org.