The country’s seven-day death average reached 642 on Friday, up from 471 on July 5, but still a fraction of the more than 2,200 deaths the country averaged each day in mid-April, when the outbreak in the Northeast was at its worst. And eight states set single-day death records this week: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Tennessee.
South Carolina and Florida were among the first states to reopen and are now among the worst-hit states. Florida hit daily records twice in the last 10 days, and has surpassed 10,000 daily cases five times in that period, announcing 10,360 new infections on Saturday.
In South Carolina, National Guard troops were expected to be called in to help hospitals in the state handle the increased strain on the health care system. The Department of Health and Environmental Control reported the first death of a child in the state, according to a news release. The child was younger than 5 and from the Midlands region of the state, according to the release, which did not otherwise identify the child.
South Carolina has had more than 54,000 coronavirus cases and more than 950 deaths as of Saturday, according to a New York Times database.
Gov. Henry McMaster announced that the sale of alcohol in all bars and restaurants would be prohibited after 11 p.m., beginning Saturday night. Mr. McMaster said he hoped the move would help reduce transmission among young adults. More than 20 percent of the state’s confirmed cases are in people ages 21 to 30, health officials said.
Florida and Texas closed bars again last month, and bars across Las Vegas and Reno shut down for the second time at midnight on Friday. Public health experts have said the virus has spread quickly through bars because people linger, drink and often have to shout or get closer to hear each other over blaring music.
Louisiana has more cases per capita than all but New York and New Jersey, and on Friday, the state recorded more than 2,600 positive tests, more than any day since April 2.
