STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Approximately 24 hours after Staten Island saw its largest surge of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases within a one-day span, over 1,100 borough residents newly tested positive for the virus as of Thursday morning — trouncing the previous high of 507 cases in a single day.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases on Staten Island has now reached 5,831, city Health Department data as of 9:30 a.m. shows, which represents an increase in 1,170 confirmed cases since Wednesday morning.
Wednesday morning previously accounted for the largest one-day increase, the Advance/SILive.com reported.
The spike in confirmed cases, which officials have previously warned does not represent the full extent of the virus, comes during what is believed to be a peak week for reported coronavirus cases and deaths.
Confirmed fatalities in borough hospitals reached 229 by Thursday morning, city Health Department data said — an increase of 50 deaths since Wednesday morning and the largest single-day increase on the borough since the pandemic began.
The Advance/SILive.com, which had previously used data from the borough’s two hospital systems, will now use the city’s death tallies.
Coronavirus patient transfers in and out of Staten Island University Hospital’s (SIUH) campuses stemming, in part, to the opening of field hospitals throughout the city has made it difficult for the hospital to provide 24-hour fatality totals.
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As of Wednesday morning, the number of coronavirus patients being cared for within the Island’s two medical systems stood at 507, which was a decrease of 47 patients since one day ago.
Staten Island University Hospital’s (SIUH) Ocean Breeze campus is currently caring for 255 patients, and the Prince’s Bay campus is currently treating 58, according to hospital spokesman Christian Preston, which represented a total drop of 31 patients across the hospital system since Wednesday morning.
A total of 600 patients have been discharged from both SIUH campuses, said SIUH spokeswoman Jillian O’Hara, an increase of 35 since yesterday.
At Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) in West Brighton, the hospital is currently treating 194 patients, which is a slight drop-off since Wednesday, when the hospital was caring for 210 coronavirus patients.
RUMC has had 132 patients treated and released as of Thursday morning, an increase of 24 patients since Wednesday morning.
Citywide, coronavirus deaths jumped to 4,426, according to city Health Department data, increasing by 824 since Wednesday morning.
The fatality total does not include individuals who have died at home but were not tested for the coronavirus.
The city’s Health Department has investigated 3,231 of those deaths and found that only 76 occurred in individuals who did not have underlying conditions. The remaining 1,195 deaths are pending investigation.
Underlying conditions include diabetes, lung disease, cancer, immunodeficiency, heart disease, hypertension, asthma, kidney disease and gastro-intestinal/liver disease, according to the Health Department.
Across the five boroughs, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases jumped from 77,967 cases as of Wednesday morning to 84,373 cases Thursday morning — an increase of 6,406 confirmed cases.
Men account for 54% of the overall cases, while women comprise 46% of the cases, said the data.
The infection rate per capita continues to ascend throughout the five boroughs.
Testing, which has ramped up on the borough in recent days, now shows 1,225 of every 100,000 Staten Islanders have tested positive, according to 2018 Census data projections and the Health Department’s Thursday morning data — the second highest rate of infection in New York City.
Staten Island accounts for 7% of the city’s total coronavirus cases and approximately 5.7% of the city’s population.
The Bronx jumped to the highest rate of confirmed cases in the city, with 1,232 residents per 100,000 testing positive — slightly higher than Staten Island’s rate. That borough has 17,648 confirmed cases, which represents 21% of the city’s total.
Queens, which had the highest rate of confirmed cases Wednesday, is now third-highest in the city with 1,188 confirmed cases per 100,000 residents. Queens has 27,063 total cases and comprises 32% of the city’s total.
Brooklyn, which has the fourth-highest rate of confirmed cases within the city at 873 residents per 100,000 testing positive, has 22,550 total cases. That total accounts for 27% of the city’s total, Health Department data shows.
Manhattan retains the lowest infection rate among the boroughs with 690 per 100,000 residents testing positive. There are 11,244 total cases in Manhattan, which constitute 13% of the city’s total.
City Health Department data that accounts for 63% of the deaths up to April 6 shows that the coronavirus is affecting Black and Latino communities approximately twice as much as Caucasian and Asian communities.
Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a new program focused on testing in minority communities, particularly black and Latino, that are being hit hardest by the virus. The effort will be led by sociologist Dr. Havidan Rodriguez, president of SUNY Albany.
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