Worcester Coronavirus Cases Jump By 111 After New Outbreaks

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester marked its biggest one-day jump in coronavirus cases on Friday, adding 111 positive cases over the last 24 hours. The citywide total stood at 593 on Friday.

The big rise comes alongside two new localized outbreaks in Worcester. City Manager Edward Augustus said that 46 residents and 10 staff members at the Holy Trinity Nursing and Rehabilitation Center had tested positive. Augustus also reported that 20 homeless people in Worcester tested positive on Thursday.

The number of coronavirus deaths at Worcester's two main hospitals, UMass Memorial and Saint Vincent, also grew to a total of 24, up two from Thursday. There are 143 people being treated for the virus at those two hospitals, plus 51 people in intensive care. Between the two hospitals, 94 staff have tested positive for coronavirus.

At Holy Trinity, six residents have been hospitalized, but the remaining residents have "mild" symptoms, Augustus said. Last week, three residents died in an outbreak at the Jewish Healthcare Center. Nursing homes across the state are dealing with outbreaks and deaths — coronavirus is particularly deadly for older people, health officials say.

The 20 homeless people who tested positive in Worcester are staying at a temporary shelter at North High School.

Worcester Medical Director Michael Hirsh said that outbreaks in vulnerable communities are difficult to avoid, and all local health officials can do is prepare.

"Short of hermetically sealing homeless shelters and skilled nursing facilities ... I think it would've been very hard to avoid these outbreaks," Hirsh said Friday.

At the state level, the Department of Public Health announced 96 more deaths and 2,033 more cases on Friday, bringing the totals to 599 deaths and 20,974 confirmed cases in Massachusetts. There were 7,414 more tests administered for a total of 102,372.