Southern US States Fast Becoming New COVID-19 Hotspots, Surges Linked to Reopenings

By Dani O. Jun 15 2020, 04:30 AM EDT

Mohammad Aamir Khan, an ambulance driver, reacts as he watches burial of people who died due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) — REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui

The COVID-19 pandemic has disturbingly shown signs of gripping multiple states located in the southern and southwestern part of the United States. Experts believe the new hotspots may be the consequence of opening too early, CBS News reports.

This week, South Carolina reported its highest number of new coronavirus cases with state officials counting 785 new cases. Saturday's record was 56 cases higher than Friday's 729, and signifies the state's fourth consecutive day of reporting the highest number of new cases. Thursday saw 682, while Wednesday saw 531, according to an analysis performed by The New York Times.

While South Carolina was among the last to impose strict lockdown orders, it was one of the first to restart its economy.

Florida also reported two consecutive days of more than 2,000 new cases as more beaches reopened in the state. On Friday, the state's health department reported 2,016 cases. On Saturday, the daily record reached 2,581, ABC News said.

The records come as the state continues its phased reopening, with most cities currently at the second phase-which allowed bars, theaters, and tattoo parlors to restart operations.

In Arizona, the average daily cases tripled in two weeks. The latest data published by the Arizona Department of Health Services on Friday showed a surge of cases between May 31 to June 6 which reached 7,121-a 54 percent increase from the 2,504 cases reported between May 24 to 30.

Hospitals in the Arizona state are at 83 percent capacity three weeks after Arizona Governor Doug Ducey eased the coronavirus restrictions.

Health officials say the increase is linked to more aggressive testing and the recent gatherings over Memorial Day weekend. Dr Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Prevention, said the U.S. is in an unsure moment, with states being in varying stages of the pandemic, as reported by the Insider.

The CDC released a warning, saying strict social distancing measures and another round of lockdowns could be imminent if the cases continue to see a dramatical rise.

However, a new British study claimed the use of face masks could curb the spread of the virus to tolerable levels. The findings, which were published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, also suggested that lockdowns may not be enough to fight the virus if it spikes again.

A different study published in the medical journal, Nature, concluded that the 1,700 various interventions taken by China, the United States, Italy, and three other countries, altered the spread of the virus. The shelter-in-place order, business closings, and travel bans have averted more than 62 million test-confirmed infections or 530 million infections.

While initial findings report school closures had no significant effect, the authors said they would conduct further studies on the issue.