89 Joliet Coronavirus Deaths, Most At Nursing Homes

JOLIET, IL — Joliet Mayor Bob O'Dekirk said the state's third largest city has had 89 new coronavirus deaths since March and 57 deaths have been attributed to Joliet's nursing care centers.

According to the Illinois Department of Public Health data, 64 percent of all Joliet coronavirus deaths have been linked to nursing homes.

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"With that said, I feel there needs to be more emphasis on protecting those people," O'Dekirk told Joliet Patch's editor Friday. "That's where the majority of people are dying."

At one point, Symphony of Joliet nursing home on North Larkin Avenue reported 26 deaths from the coronavirus. However, the latest data from the Illinois Department of Public Health reclassified two of the deaths, which lowered Symphony's death total to 24.

As of Friday, Joliet reported a total of 1,022 coronavirus cases, however, at least 718 of the cases were more than two weeks old, O'Dekirk said.

Will County has had about 4,080 coronavirus cases and at least 231 deaths, Joliet's mayor said.

Of Joliet's 1,022 coronavirus cases, at least 288 were attributed to one of the city's nursing homes, O'Dekirk said.

On a positive front, O'Dekirk said that AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center reopened for general surgeries on Friday. He said that St. Joe's number of coronavirus patients has been at a manageable number for several days now.

"So it's good to see some sense of normalcy coming back to the hospitals," O'Dekirk said. "I say this every week, they've done a great job the medical professionals. Both St. Joe's and Silver Cross have been on top of this and really done a great job adapting to the crisis."

O'Dekirk said St. Joe's has 36 hospitalized coronavirus patients and 17 patients under investigation for having symptoms to the illness. Only five coronavirus patients are on ventilators, the mayor said.

Silver Cross Hospital in nearby New Lenox has 27 coronavirus patients and 11 patients under investigation for coronavirus symptoms, O'Dekirk said.

Silver Cross has tested about 1,600 people for the new coronavirus and Silver Cross has discharged about 275 people who were hospitalized for the coronavirus.

Here's a rundown of Joliet's nursing care center deaths:

• 24 at Symphony of Joliet
• 12 at Presence Villa Franciscan on Springfield Avenue
• 11 at Sunny Hill on Doris Avenue
• 9 at PARC of Joliet on Hammes Avenue
• 1 at Spring Creek Nursing Home on Draper Avenue

Related:
Illinois Coronavirus Update May 15: 3,928 Deaths
Joliet Diocese Plan To Reopen Churches Revealed
No Summer Picnics At Joliet's St. Joe's Park; Here's Why