Alabama reports highest number of daily coronavirus cases at 1,700

This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. (NIAID-RML via AP) This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. (NIAID-RML via AP)

By KIM CHANDLER / Associated Press July 3, 2020 3 min read

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama reported more than 1,700 new confirmed coronavirus cases- the highest number yet for a single day- as doctors and state officials expressed concern about further spread during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

The state on Thursday surpassed the previous high-water mark for the most infections reported in a 24-hour period while the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 also reached a new high of 843. The state this week also so the lowest availability in ICU beds since the pandemic began.

Dr. Michael Saag, an infectious diseases physician at the University of Alabama at Birmingham who also had COVID-19, likened the spread in the state to a “wildfire.”

“The data are pretty dismal right now, not just in our state but around the country,” Saag said in a Friday interview with reporters.

In May, Alabama was averaging 300 cases a day, but now is at over 1,000. “The data are telling us we are headed toward a tough situation,” Saag said.