Coronavirus deaths: About 12 people an hour are dying of COVID-19 in NYC
NEW YORK CITY -- Amid fears of an even greater surge next week, New York City is now seeing about 12 deaths an hour from COVID-19, with 1,867 total coronavirus fatalities reported in New York City, an increase of 305 in a 24-hour period, the New York City Health Department announced Friday evening.
With U.S. medical experts and even President Donald Trump now estimating the death toll from the coronavirus pandemic could reach 240,000 nationwide, the sheer practicalities of death - where to put the bodies - are worrying just about everyone as cities, hospitals and private medical groups clamor to secure additional storage.
Deemed the U.S. epicenter, New York City authorities brought in refrigerated trucks to store bodies. At Brooklyn Hospital Center, a worker wheeled out a body covered in white plastic on a gurney and a forklift operator carefully raised it into a refrigerated trailer.
NYC Health Department also announced a significant jump in the number of cases of COVID-19. There are now 56,289 positive cases of the novel coronavirus in New York City, a 13% increase in a 24-hour period. 11,739 people are hospitalized due to COVID-19 in New York City.
