Tuscaloosa's 7-Day Average For New Coronavirus Cases Tops 100

TUSCALOOSA, AL. — Tuscaloosa County hit a disturbing new coronavirus milestone Friday, with the latest data pushing the county's 7-day average for new cases into triple digits for the first time amid a worrisome rise in local hospitalizations and community spread of the virus.

Click here to subscribe to our daily email newsletters and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox and mobile devices for free. You can also support local journalism by donating as little as $5 a month to become a supporting member or by downloading our free Patch mobile app.

According to Friday's update, Tuscaloosa added 120 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the county's average up to more than 100 new cases confirmed per day over the last week. This is far and away worse than highs in the 60s seen during spikes through the summer and late summer due to holidays like July Fourth and Labor Day. Hospitalizations statewide and locally are also on rise, as Alabama breaks its record for total hospitalizations ahead of another expected surge in cases in the coming weeks following the Thanksgiving holiday.

DCH Health System on Thursday recorded 99 COVID-19 hospitalizations in Tuscaloosa and Northport as it inches closer to topping its previous high of 105-109 cases during the surge in late July. While the inpatient numbers are high, officials have said the situation remains manageable and that ICU cases have remained flat.

It's also important to note that DCH added 17 new patients Thursday, bringing its cumulative total of new inpatients added since Sunday to 87, which comes out to an average of 17.4 new cases per day for the hospital system over the last five days.

READ ALSO: DCH Shows Off New $1M Testing Facility, Gives Coronavirus Update

Patch also reported Thursday that in the course of a day, the county added seven new coronavirus deaths, four of which had been confirmed.

Tuscaloosa County will also soon top another dreaded total of 10,000 cumulative cases since the pandemic began, as the county's current case count sits at 9,903. Of those cases, 1,648 or 16.64%, have been identified in the last 14 days.

Community spreading of the virus has been regularly cited over the last month as the reason for the steady climb in cases and hospitalizations in Tuscaloosa, with officials warning of any increase in institutional spreading in nursing homes and longterm care facilities posing risks for the local healthcare system.

Local schools and the city of Tuscaloosa's workforce have also been hit hard in recent weeks, but city leaders, including Mayor Walt Maddox, said this week that any future policy decisions will be based on protecting the operations of DCH Health System and ensuring the integrity of the system is not compromised.

Follow Patch here for updates or on Facebook and Twitter. You can also download the Patch mobile app, free for Apple and Android mobile devices.