Florida surpasses 1,000 coronavirus deaths, 30,000 cases

The number of fatalities in Florida from the new coronavirus surpassed 1,000 deaths on Friday, as the number of confirmed cases in the Sunshine State exceeded 30,000 people.

The state Department of Health reported that Florida had 1,012 deaths and 30,174 confirmed cases, as of Friday morning.

Miami-Dade County continued to be the state’s coronavirus epicenter with a third of the state’s confirmed cases.

As of Friday, almost 5,000 people have been hospitalized in Florida because of the virus.

Nationwide, there have been almost 870,500 confirmed cases and more than 50,000 deaths.

States with more cases than Florida, the nation’s third most populous state, are New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Michigan.

The grim news came Friday as a task force appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis continued to ponder recommendations for how to reopen businesses in the state that have been shuttered, in many parts, since mid-March when local lockdown orders were issued. DeSantis issued a statewide stay-at-home order at the beginning of April.

Officials in the Florida Keys said Friday that it likely wouldn’t reopen to visitors for more than a month, if not longer. Monroe County, home to the Key West, installed a checkpoint on southbound U.S. 1 to keep out nonresidents during the coronavirus crisis.

“Monroe County understands there has been community discussion on opening dates for lodging and attractions, but because of the continued threat of COVID-19 in areas outside of Monroe County, not allowing visitors back to the Florida Keys will still be in place throughout May, and potentially longer given the state of the virus,” Kristen Livengood, Monroe County’s spokeswoman, said in an email.