Coronavirus update: Kelly orders flags lowered as Kansas reports 131 COVID deaths Friday
Kansas averaged 40 COVID-19 deaths a day during the past week, according to Kansas Department of Health and Environment data.
It’s the first time daily average reached 40 and it’s more than four times the amount of deaths Kansas averaged at the beginning of October.
On Friday, Gov. Laura Kelly ordered flags to half-staff to commemorate the more than 2,000 Kansans who have died of COVID-19. It took about seven months to reach 1,000 deaths but roughly 1.5 months more to exceed 2,000.
“While COVID-19 has impacted each Kansas community differently, we all share this collective loss of our family, friends, and neighbors, “ she said. “We can honor their memory by protecting each other and working together to slow the spread of this virus. Wear a mask, keep your distance, and avoid large gatherings.”
Flags are to be flown at half-staff through sundown Monday.
The KDHE’s Friday report showed 5,491 new cases and 131 more deaths since Wednesday. The 131 deaths are the highest in any Monday, Wednesday and Friday report since the KDHE started reporting on those days in mid-May. It’s only the third time a report broke the 100-mark of deaths; the other two happened last week.
Kansas had 286 deaths in the past week, which is the deadliest week on record. Last week was the second-worst with 257 deaths.
The KDHE has reported a total of 185,294 cases and 2,072 deaths on Friday.
COVID-19 victims in Kansas ranged in age from 18 to 107. The median age is 81.
The 18-24 age group has the least amount of deaths with five since the start of the pandemic. The number increases as age groups get older before hitting a high of 772 deaths in the 85-plus age group.
Hospitalizations also mostly increase with each older age group. The fewest number of hospitalizations are in the 10-17 age group, with 44 youth having been hospitalized. The most hospitalizations happened in the 65-74 age group, where there have been 1,246 hospitalizations. There have been a total of 5,795 COVID-19 hospitalizations.
The latest weekly White House report, obtained by the Center for Public Integrity, showed Kansas had the 12th-highest new case rate in the country, fifth-highest positive test rate, 19th-highest hospital admission rate and the fifth-highest rate of new deaths.
Sedgwick County figures
Sedgwick County cases increased by 961 to 32,709 on Friday, according to the KDHE. It’s the most cases in the state with Johnson County being second with 32,163 cases.
Sedgwick County officials have reported 199 deaths.
The rolling 14-day average of positive cases was nearly 18% on Wednesday, the latest day available, according to the Sedgwick County COVID-19 dashboard. It’s been mostly trending down since hitting a record-high of more than 23% in mid-November. The current number is still higher than any percent from the beginning of the pandemic in March until the beginning of November.
This story was originally published December 11, 2020 at 2:12 PM with the headline "Coronavirus update: Kelly orders flags lowered as Kansas reports 131 COVID deaths Friday."