Both the number of new coronavirus cases confirmed in Wisconsin and the percentage of tests coming back positive took the biggest jump to date in the past 24 hours.
With 458 new cases reported by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, the total of confirmed cases is now 7,388. Nine more people died of COVID19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 327.
More tests than ever in a single day were also conducted, but that increase is not the only reason the case count went up. Of tests processed, 12.67 percent came back positive — the highest percentage to date. Of all tests processed since the beginning of the crisis, 9.16 percent have been positive, also the highest percentage to date.
The increases continue to be driven by new cases confirmed in Brown County, where a Green Bay meat packing plant was forced to shut down due to a coronavirus outbreak. Brown County reports 118 new cases, bringing its total to 1,175. Brown County now has the highest infection rate in the county by far — 452 infections per 100,000 residents, compared to Milwaukee County’s 319.
Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Rock, Sauk, Walworth and Waukesha also saw double-digit increases in cases.
The DHS said yesterday that about 49 percent of confirmed cases had recovered, and about four percent had died.
As of Friday afternoon, 342 people were hospitalized, up only slightly from Thursday. Of those, 127 — about 37 percent — are in intensive care units. Another 218 people are hospitalized with symptoms but awaiting results.
