SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – Active cases of the coronavirus have topped 7,000 for the first time in South Dakota as hospitalizations also reached a new high.
As the virus surges across the state, the Department of Health reported 797 new cases, bringing the number of people with active infections to 7,132.
Health officials also reported one of the highest single-day death tolls of the virus to date _13 new deaths.
Roughly halfway through October, the state has already had more deaths from COVID-19 than it has any other month.
Health officials reported 81 people died this month.
Nearly 24,000 South Dakotans have recovered.
In the Sioux Empire hospital region which includes the Sioux Falls metro area, 162 people are in hospital for COVID-19, 38 are in ICU, and 20 are on ventilators.
Fifteen percent of the region’s beds are occupied by coronavirus cases, nearly 62% with non-COVID-19 cases, and 23% of hospital beds are available.
