COVID-19 Compilation: Part 25 - August 30 - September 5, 2020
On March 14th, I began posting daily updates to my facebook page, regarding the status of the COVID-19 pandemic. I have used data from worldometer as a primary source for daily and cumulative data, with frequent supplementation from various national and local sites.
This blog post compiles the period of August 30th through September 5th.
see https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ for moreAUGUST 30
There were 220,670 new cases worldwide today, including 33,981 in the USA.There were 4,182 deaths worldwide today, including 369 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 25.38 million cases and 850,163 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.17 million cases and 187,224 deaths.
India reported 79,457 new cases today; that's a new record for any country on a single day, eclipsing the USA record set on July 24th. It was the 5th consecutive day in India with more than 75,000 cases.
On Friday, the University of Alabama System announced an additional 492 student cases, in addition to 51 faculty and staff cases, across its campuses. That brought the system's total to more than 1200 total cases.
But, in the 2nd paragraph of the announcement, was this tidbit: "At this point, no COVID-positive students at UA, UAB or UAH are hospitalized."
Notwithstanding that there is often a lag time between a positive test result and hospitalizations, this brings up 2 immediate questions that the press release doesn't answer:
- How accurate are these test results, if ZERO students have been hospitalized?
- What about the 100+ faculty and staff who have had positive tests, so far? Are any of them hospitalized?
AUGUST 31
There were 244,557 new cases worldwide today, including 38,560 in the USA.There were 4,221 deaths worldwide today, including 512 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 25.63 million cases and 854,424 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.21 million cases and 187,736 deaths.v
Today marks the end of the 6th full calendar month of the pandemic outside China.
The attached charts show the case and death rates, by month, for the 5 countries with the most cases and deaths to date.
In August, by far the country with the most cases was India, with 1.99 million cases, the most for any country in a single month so far (the USA had 1.98 million cases last month, per worldometer data). India has 4 times the population of the USA; it now appears that India is the new epicenter for the virus worldwide. The USA, with its twin peaks curve, is unique among the countries with the most cases and deaths so far.
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| Case and Death trends by Month and Country, through August |
SEPTEMBER 1
There were 260,004 new cases worldwide today, including 41,979 in the USA.There were 5,899 deaths worldwide today, including 1,164 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 25.89 million cases and 860,323 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.26 million cases and 188,900 deaths.
With 4,729 new reported cases today, Russia becomes the 4th country to surpass 1,000,000 cases, per worldometer.
The attached charts show the case and death rates, by month, for the 5 USA states with the most cases and deaths to date.
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| Case and Death trends by Month and State through August |
- Louisiana
- Florida
- Mississippi
- Arizona
- Georgia
New York, once the epicenter of the crisis worldwide, is now 7th in the USA in total per capita cases.
All of the states at the top end of total cases to date had significant declines in cases during August; Florida fell by more than 50%.
Deaths, however, were up substantially, month over month, in all of the hardest hit states, including New York and New Jersey.
August 30 | August 31 | September 1 | September 2 | September 3 | September 4 | September 5
There were 6,316 deaths worldwide today, including 1,090 in the USA. Among today's COVID-19 related deaths were Tom Seaver, the superstar of the 1969 Miracle Mets.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.17 million cases and 866,614 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.29 million cases and 189,964 deaths.
In the USA, Massachusetts updated its case definition to align more closely to the CDC; as a result the case count for the state dropped by 8,045 total cases, and the death count by 26.
August 30 | August 31 | September 1 | September 2 | September 3 | September 4 | September 5
There were 5,886 deaths worldwide today, including 1,094 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.46 million cases and 872,508 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.34 million cases and 191,058 deaths.
India had 84,156 new cases today, a new record for any country, and the 7th national record for India in the past 9 days.
In Europe, cases have shot back up in both France and Spain.
France had 7,157 new cases today, after 7,017 cases yesterday. The two day total of 14,174 is the highest in France since the start of the pandemic.
Spain had 8,959 new cases, the most there since March 20th.
Deaths in both countries are still very low as compared to the early days; for example, Spain recorded 961 deaths on April 2nd and 34 today. But deaths are going up: The 7-day moving average for deaths in Spain was 2 at the end of July. Today it's 34.
In Catalonia, one report noted that 13% of those who tested positive were not quarantining, and 45% of close contacts of confirmed patients were also violating quarantine rules. The head of the COVID-19 follow-up unit in Catalonia, Jacobo Mendioroz, observed, “Diagnosing patients is completely useless if they don’t stay home after testing positive.”
August 30 | August 31 | September 1 | September 2 | September 3 | September 4 | September 5
There were 5,814 deaths worldwide today, including 1,033 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.78 million cases and 878,354 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.39 million cases and 192,111 deaths. India had 87,111 new cases today, a new record for any country.
All of the states at the top end of total cases to date had significant declines in cases during August; Florida fell by more than 50%.
Deaths, however, were up substantially, month over month, in all of the hardest hit states, including New York and New Jersey.
SEPTEMBER 2
There were 286,418 new cases worldwide today, including 41,211 in the USA.There were 6,316 deaths worldwide today, including 1,090 in the USA. Among today's COVID-19 related deaths were Tom Seaver, the superstar of the 1969 Miracle Mets.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.17 million cases and 866,614 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.29 million cases and 189,964 deaths.
In the USA, Massachusetts updated its case definition to align more closely to the CDC; as a result the case count for the state dropped by 8,045 total cases, and the death count by 26.
SEPTEMBER 3
There were 287,408 new cases worldwide today, including 44,507 in the USA.There were 5,886 deaths worldwide today, including 1,094 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.46 million cases and 872,508 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.34 million cases and 191,058 deaths.
India had 84,156 new cases today, a new record for any country, and the 7th national record for India in the past 9 days.
In Europe, cases have shot back up in both France and Spain.
France had 7,157 new cases today, after 7,017 cases yesterday. The two day total of 14,174 is the highest in France since the start of the pandemic.
Spain had 8,959 new cases, the most there since March 20th.
Deaths in both countries are still very low as compared to the early days; for example, Spain recorded 961 deaths on April 2nd and 34 today. But deaths are going up: The 7-day moving average for deaths in Spain was 2 at the end of July. Today it's 34.
In Catalonia, one report noted that 13% of those who tested positive were not quarantining, and 45% of close contacts of confirmed patients were also violating quarantine rules. The head of the COVID-19 follow-up unit in Catalonia, Jacobo Mendioroz, observed, “Diagnosing patients is completely useless if they don’t stay home after testing positive.”
SEPTEMBER 4
There were a record 300,459 new cases worldwide today, including 52,853 in the USA. There were 5,814 deaths worldwide today, including 1,033 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 26.78 million cases and 878,354 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.39 million cases and 192,111 deaths. India had 87,111 new cases today, a new record for any country.
Other countries with new case records:
| Country | Number of Cases |
| France | 8,975 |
| Ukraine | 2,723 |
| Czechia | 797 |
| Iraq | 5,039 |
| Nepal | 1,359 |
Italy, with 1,773 new cases, had its highest total since May 2nd.
In the United States, Illinois set a new record with 5,368 new cases, shattering the prior record of 4,014 set back on May 12th. The first 3 days of September had a combined total of 4,980 new cases.
So, what happened in Illinois?
If you guessed "backlog," you guessed right. Per an announcement from the Illinois Department of Public Health: "Earlier this week, a slowdown in data processing within Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) systems affected the reporting of tests due to the large volume of testing occurring in Illinois. All available resources were deployed to improve the data systems, which are now fixed, and the backlog created by the slowdown has been cleared."
Throughout August, Illinois reported an average 44,019 test results per day, with a 4.15% positivity rate. Today, Illinois reported 149,273 test results, with a positivity rate of 3.60%.
Test more, get more cases. Or, in this case, clear the reporting backlog, get more cases. It's not necessarily bad.
SEPTEMBER 5
There were 269,374 new cases worldwide today, including 42,095 in the USA.There were 4,795 deaths worldwide today, including 707 in the USA.
Cumulatively, there have now been 27.05 million cases and 883,159 deaths worldwide. In the USA, there have been 6.43 million cases and 192,818 deaths.
India had 90,600 new cases today, the 4th consecutive day for India setting a new record for any country. For the week ending today, India had 571,127 new cases, an average of 81,590 per day. No other country has had as many as 80,000 cases yet in a single day. Granted, India has 4 times the population of the United States, but those are still scary numbers. India will pass Brazil, most likely tomorrow, for 2nd most cases in the world, and could pass the United States for most cases before the end of October.
| Location | Cases | Change | Deaths | Change |
| World | 1,859,520 | +3.7% | 37,161 | -2.6% |
| USA | 296,168 | -0.5% | 5,989 | -10.9% |
As reported cases surge in India and parts of Europe, while remaining flat in the United States, the share of world cases in the United States fell to 15.9%, the lowest since the week of March 21st. COVID-19 deaths in the USA fell to 16.1%. The attached chart shows the percentage of cases and deaths in the USA, week by week. The USA accounts for about 4% of the world population.
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| US percentage of worldwide COVID-19 cases and deaths, week-by-week |
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