On the same day Los Angeles County Public Health officials reported the first Los Angeles County case of the United Kingdom’s variant of COVID-19, they also said the county surpassed 1 million cases of COVID-19.
On Saturday, officials said the man who was diagnosed had recently spent time in both Los Angeles County and Oregon, and although he is the first to be diagnosed, officials said they believe the U.K. strain is already circulating within local communities.
“The (U.K.) variant spreads more easily and quickly than other variants,” officials said in a press release. “Currently, there is no evidence that it causes more severe illness or increased risk of death.”
The presence of the U.K. variant in L.A. County has resulted in officials continuing their message that people should be taking the proper safety precautions, wearing a mask properly, physically distancing and not gathering with people outside of one’s household.
LA County Public Health also released the following updated COVID-19 statistics:
ICU available capacity for Southern California: 0.0%
New COVID-19 cases reported in L.A. County in the past 24 hours: 14,669
Total COVID-19 cases in L.A. County: 1,003,923
New deaths related to COVID-19 reported: 253
Total COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County: 13,741
Hospitalizations countywide: 7,597; 22% of whom are in the ICU.
Hospitalizations at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital as of Jan. 13: 98, with 840 discharged since the onset of the pandemic.
COVID-19 cases reported in the Santa Clarita Valley in the past 24 hours: 306, 230 of which came from the city of Santa Clarita.
Total COVID-19 cases in the SCV: 21,440
Total COVID-19 deaths in the SCV: 154
The numbers of SCV cases, including all area health care providers’ daily figures and those at Pitchess Detention Center, broken down into region, are as follows:
City of Santa Clarita: 15,512
Unincorporated – Acton: 358
Unincorporated – Agua Dulce: 180
Unincorporated – Bouquet Canyon: 38
Unincorporated – Canyon Country: 633
Unincorporated – Castaic: 3,262 (majority of Castaic cases come from Pitchess Detention Center, exact number unavailable)
Unincorporated – Lake Hughes: 34
Unincorporated – Newhall: 59
Unincorporated – Placerita Canyon: 0
Unincorporated – San Francisquito Canyon/Bouquet Canyon: 12
Unincorporated – Sand Canyon: 13
Unincorporated – Saugus: 108
Unincorporated – Saugus/Canyon Country: 26
Unincorporated – Stevenson Ranch: 829
Unincorporated – Val Verde: 237
Unincorporated – Valencia: 139
To view all coronavirus-related stories, visit signalscv.com/category/news/coronavirus.
