Worcester Coronavirus Cases Now Exceed 100

WORCESTER, MA — The number of coronavirus cases in Worcester reached triple digits on Monday, officials said. The city now has 101 confirmed COVID-19 cases, growth of 531 percent since last Monday.

Health officials, including Worcester Medical Director Michael Hirsh, have been warning of a "surge" of new cases as testing capabilities increase — they have also said that acute cases of COVID-19 are beginning to increase at local hospitals.

The number of cases in Massachusetts grew to 5,752 on Monday, state officials said. That includes 56 deaths since the outbreak began in early March. Worcester County had a total of 390 cases on Monday, the fifth-highest of any county in the state.

Over the weekend, Worcester opened a fourth facility at Worcester Tech to house homeless people during the outbreak. The shelters can accommodate up to 25 people at a time to stay within social distancing rules. Other shelters have opened at North High School, St. John's Church, and Ascension Church. A total of 63 people are living across the four shelters.