California reported 3,974 new coronavirus cases and 51 deaths on Friday, a decline from previous days tempered by the fact that several counties did not report new data, most notably Los Angeles County.
The state has now had 249,262 cases and 6,312 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic. The cases reported Friday are down significantly from a week where California twice hit record highs, leaving it with a seven-day average of 6,402 daily cases and 65 deaths.
But those numbers don’t include several counties that did not report new data on Friday, when the Fourth of July holiday was observed. Among them is Los Angeles County, which has 43 percent of all the cases in the state and went into Friday averaging 2,314 daily cases and 30 deaths. Los Angeles County Public Health said on its website it is improving its data processing systems and will not report new data until Monday.
Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Joaquin were among the nearly 30 counties that did not report any new cases or deaths on Friday.
In the Bay Area, Contra Costa County recorded 106 new cases for a total of 3,432 and one new death for a total of 79. That’s slightly below the county’s seven-day average of 108 cases. Cases in the county have been ticking up since May 16 when it was averaging just 12 new cases a day. Contra Costa County has been moving closer to overtaking San Mateo County for the fourth-most cases in the Bay Area.
Contra Costa County reported 1,631 new tests on Thursday, the most recent data available, with a seven-day average positive rate of 7.2 percent, the highest it’s been since April 19 and a significant increase from a low of 1.7 percent on May 15.
Santa Clara County reported 99 new cases and one death on Friday, for a total of 4,849 cases and 160 deaths. Cases have been spiking in Santa Clara County since mid-May, with a seven-day average of 124 cases daily. On May 11 the county was averaging 14 daily cases. The county has a seven-day average positive testing rate of 2.6 percent, an increase from a low of 1.2 percent on May 27.
San Mateo County reported 65 new cases for a total of 3,441 and no new deaths, with a total of 108 COVID-19 fatalities. The county has a seven-day average of 56 cases daily. The county has a testing positivity rate of 4.9 percent.
Alameda County, which has the most cases in the Bay Area, reported 88 new cases for a total of 6,472 and two deaths for a total of 140. The county has a seven-day average of 140 daily cases, the highest average in the Bay Area. The county has a seven-day average positive testing rate of 4 percent.
San Francisco reported 57 new cases, for a total of 3,776 and no new deaths, with a total of 50 COVID-19 fatalities. The county has a seven-day average of 54 daily cases. San Francisco has an overall positive testing rate of 3 percent.
