Riverside County reports record single-day COVID deaths as ICUs continue to fill up
Over the past 24 hours, Riverside County reported 42 COVID-related deaths. It s the highest amount of deaths reported by the county over a day span. The previous record was on August 2, when the county reported 31 deaths, county public health director Kim Saruwatari told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning.
Saruwatari added that 37 of the 42 deaths reported today occurred between Dec. 1 and Dec. 10.
Meanwhile, the number of COVID patients admitted into the ICU continued to grow even as the County s ICU bed availability percentage remains at 0.0%.
According to leaders for Eisenhower Health & the Desert Care Network, hospitals are now in the surge plans where rooms get converted to make space for ICU patients.
Riverside County ICU bed availability drops to 4.1%, local hospitals review surge plans
JFK MEMORIAL
ICU bed availability in Riverside County has now dropped to 4.1% a concerning statistic as coronavirus cases continue to surge across Southern California heading into the holidays.
(UPDATE 4:30 PM - Riverside County s ICU bed availability has gone up to 7.9%)
Todd Burke, a spokesperson for Desert Care Network, says their emergency room staff members want to assure the public that if they need to, they can create more intensive care unit rooms.
He says the hospital has been preparing their surge plan since the beginning of the pandemic. Burke says emergency room staff members have the resources and equipment to convert rooms into ICU rooms if necessary, to handle additional cases.