COVID-19 Infections in Pasadena Gradually Trending Down After Peaking Last Week

Health officials in Pasadena reported 122 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday after the city saw a peak of more than twice that number of infections last week, officials said.

One additional fatality attributed to the virus raised Pasadena’s overall death toll to 176. Further details regarding the most recent victim were not available.

A total of 8,513 infections have been documented in the city.

The city’s average daily infections over the prior week dropped to 188, after reaching an all-time high of 198 on Sunday, according to city data.

While the number of new infections has decreased in recent days, the level of new infections was still well above what Pasadena experienced for the first nine months of the pandemic.

The city topped 100 new infections for the first time on Dec. 5, city data show. More than 200 cases were reported for the first time on Dec. 17. The largest number of infections reported in a single day was 253 on Jan. 5.

Huntington Hospital officials reported treating 197 COVID-19 patients on Monday, with 38 of them being treated in intensive care units.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced 12,617 new infections and 137 additional fatalities, raising the county’s overall totals to 932,697 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County, and a total of 12,387 deaths.

“Every minute, on average, 10 people in L.A. County test positive for COVID -19, and these 15,000 individuals who test positive each day were capable of infecting others for two days before they had any symptoms or knew they were positive,” the L.A. County Department of Public Health said in a written statement. “At least 10-12% of people infected with the virus end up hospitalized at some point, and more than 1% of people diagnosed with COVID-19 end up dying.”

Just over 7,900 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized throughout the county on Monday, according to the agency. Twenty-two percent of them, or 1,740 patients, were being treated in ICUs.

L.A. County Director of Public Health Barbara Ferrer noted the anniversary of the first detected COVID-19 infection in the county was approaching.

“We understand it’s been a long and exhausting journey these past 12 months. With the rollout of vaccinations, there is hope for a brighter future. However, we need to make sure everyone survives to benefit from the vaccine,” she said.

“Now is not the time to meet with friends at your home to watch the game. It is not the time to go for a walk without a mask. All it takes is one mistake and soon five, 10 or 20 other people become infected — many of whom could be your friends, family members or colleagues,” according to Ferrer. “This deadly virus continues to spread at alarming rates and the most important way to stop it in its tracks is to avoid interactions with others and protect ourselves at all times.”

State officials reported 39,839 new COVID-19 infections and 264 additional fatalities on Monday, bringing the statewide totals to 2,710,801 cases of the virus and 29,965 deaths.

The state’s average positivity rate over the prior two weeks was measured as 13.7%, according to the California Department of Public Health. The seven-day average was 14.2%.

As of Monday, L.A. County represented 34% of California’s COVID-19 infections and 41% of the state’s deaths.