7,650 new COVID-19 cases in Florida on Thursday

This content is being provided for free as a public service to our readers. Sign up for our daily or breaking newsletters to stay informed. If local news is important to you, consider subscribing to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

The Florida Department of Health announced 7,650 new cases of COVID-19 in the state on Thursday, bringing the state’s total infections to 510,389 since the pandemic began.

Many state-run testing sites on the east coast of Florida were closed for several days in response to Tropical Storm Isaias.

120 deaths were reported, raising the death toll to 7,747 for Florida residents since the pandemic began.

Manatee County had one new death reported since Wednesday, for a total of 189. Sarasota County also reported one new death, raising the toll to 130.

Sarasota County’s COVID-19 case numbers rose by 85 cases since Wednesday, for a total of 6,025. Manatee County had 112 new cases, for a total of 9,050.

According to a state database, in Sarasota County 90 people are currently hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of COVID-19. In Manatee County, 83 are hospitalized. Statewide, 7,374 are hospitalized.

While the coronavirus pandemic has walloped private businesses’ budgets, the crisis is now hitting the public sector at the clerk of court offices in Sarasota and Manatee counties.