Coronavirus cases in San Diego County are doubling every five days, but it’s an encouraging sign that they aren’t growing any faster, county officials said Sunday.
“What is slightly encouraging here is that our rate of doubling is a little bit greater than five days,” said Supervisor Nathan Fletcher. “We really want to continue to flatten the curve and continue to increase the number of days it takes for us to double.”
Fletcher’s comments came during the county’s daily media briefing on the coronavirus epidemic, during which the latest case numbers were released.
There were 117 new cases reported Sunday, bringing the total to 1,326. There was one more death recorded, for a total of 19.
Dr. Wilma Wooten, the county’s chief health officer, said the latest victim was a woman in her late 90s. “Our sincere sympathies once again go out to the family and friends of the most recent death,” she said.
At the briefing, officials acknowledged that the stay-at-home orders was creating stress. Fletcher said San Diegans who are struggling with economic despair and depression can reach out to available services, such as the Access and Crisis Line at 888-724-7240.
He said the county has not seen an increase in the number of domestic violence cases, “and that is encouraging.”
“But we should note that we are still in the early days,” Fletcher said. “The longer this goes, it increases the risk.”
Supervisor Greg Cox reported San Diego Sheriff’s deputies issued 25 citations over the weekend to people violating stay-at-home orders. The citations carry a maximum $1,000 fine and possible jail time.
“The warnings are over; we are now down to serious business, and we will enforce the law,” he said.
