Miami has become the new Wuhan, infectious diseases expert Dr.Lilian Abbo told reporters on Monday, Mediaite reported.
"Miami is now the epicenter for the virus," Abbo said at a press conference with Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez. "What we were seeing in Wuhan five months ago [at the start of the pandemic in China], we're now seeing here."
Abbo, from the University of Miami health system, made the comments after Florida registered the highest one-day record of any state in the country, with 15,300 people testing positive for the coronavirus. There were 12,624 more who tested positive Sunday.
Florida has an overall total of 282,435 confirmed cases, with almost a fourth of those (67,713) in Miami-Dade County.
Gimenez said last week the real number of Florida residents infected might be as much as 10 times greater than the official confirmed case count.
There have been 4,277 Florida residents who have died, representing approximately 1.5% of those who have contracted the virus.
That figure is well below a national average of more than 4%, although Meidaite speculated this difference may get smaller as new cases of the virus resolve.
The surge in cases has occurred even though Miami-Dade officials have put in place numerous restrictions in an attempt to help prevent the spread of the virus. These measures include an evening curfew and mandating residents wear face masks, even in outdoor areas.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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