Confirmed coronavirus cases in Worcester County were nearing 1,000 on Sunday, with 978 total cases showing a slight slowing in the past few days in the number of new cases.
Worcester County had three new reported deaths Saturday, bringing the county’s total to 16. Those whose deaths were announced Saturday by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and include a man and a woman in their 90s and a man in his 80s, each who had pre-existing conditions.
The statewide total of cases rose on Sunday to 12,500, a one-day increase of under 7%. In a week, cases have risen by 152%. The state’s projected peak in cases will hit in the next week or two.
The pace of new deaths has also relatively slowed in the past few days. The state had 231 deaths as of Sunday, up from 216 on Saturday and 192 on Friday.
Coronavirus tests statewide now total nearly 72,000, doubling in the past week. More than 35,000 of those tests have been conducted at Quest Diagnostics in Marlborough.
Nationwide and worldwide cases continue to soar.
The United States total Monday morning was roughly 338,000, or more than one of every four cases worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. The U.S. has reported more than 9,600 deaths. International cases are close to 1.3 million with more than 70,000 deaths.
