latimes--2020-12-26--Los Angeles County reports nearly 30,000 coronavirus cases over a two-day period

The number of coronavirus cases and related deaths in Los Angeles County continued to surge over the first two days of the three-day holiday weekend , with health officials on Saturday reporting a combined tally of nearly 30,000 cases .
Officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and Saturday combined .
Officials said Friday ’ s case numbers were delayed a day because of an interruption of internet service in the L.A. area by Spectrum .
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period .
The county has averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the past week .
Los Angeles County has now reported a total of more than 707,000 coronavirus cases and more than 9,440 deaths .
Hospitals throughout the county are overwhelmed .
Some are running dangerously low on their supplies of oxygen , critical to treating severely ill COVID-19 patients who have begun to suffocate on account of their virus-inflamed lungs .
Emergency rooms are so overcrowded that ambulances have to wait as long as eight hours to drop off patients or are sometimes sent to hospitals farther away .
“ People mixing with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the COVID-19 pandemic in L.A. County to the most dangerous levels that we have ever seen , ” county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement .
“ The overwhelmed hospitals are the saddest proof of this reality .
To honor our health care workers and for the safety of your family and friends , please delay travel plans and gather only with members of our household .
These actions will save lives.
” In Los Angeles County , COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to 6,815 , more than triple the figure from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hospital .
ICUs across Los Angeles County are essentially full , and on Christmas , 1,368 people with COVID-19 were in the ICU , nearly triple the comparable figure from Thanksgiving , when 484 were in the ICU .
The surge in cases can be seen throughout the region .
On Saturday , Orange County also broke the record for highest count of new coronavirus cases in a single day , with 5,953 cases , breaking the record last set on Dec. 20 , when 4,606 cases were reported .
Orange County has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day over the past week .
Orange County on Saturday also posted its highest tally of COVID-19 deaths reported in a single day Saturday , with 63 new deaths , breaking the record last set on Sept. 29 , when 33 deaths were reported .
Orange County has averaged 12 deaths a day over the past week .
Cumulatively , California has reported 2.1 million coronavirus cases , and , on Saturday , pushed past another sobering milestone : more than 24,000 deaths .
At least 234 deaths were reported statewide Saturday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tally , and at least 24,200 deaths were reported .
If current trends continue , the University of Washington ’ s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation forecasts that California could tally a cumulative total of more than 70,000 deaths by April 1 .
An additional 15,000 would die if mandates are eased , while 10,000 fewer people would die if virtually everyone wore masks when outside the home .
With Christmas over , and many people defying pleas by authorities to skip holiday gatherings , Los Angeles County health officials are now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to quarantine themselves for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness .
Quarantining keeps people at home as much as possible , with groceries and restaurant food delivered to avoid spreading the virus in the community .
“ We ’ re really working right now on dealing with the fact that we think there is a lot of traveling , ” Ferrer said the day before Christmas .
“ And that means when people come back , we need them to do that self-quarantine for those 10 days .
”

The number of coronavirus cases and related deaths in Los Angeles County continued to surge over the first two days of the three-day holiday weekend, with health officials on Saturday reporting a combined tally of nearly 30,000 cases.
Officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and Saturday combined. Officials said Friday’s case numbers were delayed a day because of an interruption of internet service in the L.A. area by Spectrum.
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period. The county has averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the past week.
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Los Angeles County has now reported a total of more than 707,000 coronavirus cases and more than 9,440 deaths.
Hospitals throughout the county are overwhelmed. Some are running dangerously low on their supplies of oxygen, critical to treating severely ill COVID-19 patients who have begun to suffocate on account of their virus-inflamed lungs. Emergency rooms are so overcrowded that ambulances have to wait as long as eight hours to drop off patients or are sometimes sent to hospitals farther away.
Tracking the coronavirus in L.A. County The latest maps and charts on the spread of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County, including cases, deaths, closures and restrictions.
“People mixing with others not in their household has driven the COVID-19 pandemic in L.A. County to the most dangerous levels that we have ever seen,” county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement. “The overwhelmed hospitals are the saddest proof of this reality. To honor our health care workers and for the safety of your family and friends, please delay travel plans and gather only with members of our household. These actions will save lives.”
In Los Angeles County, COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to 6,815, more than triple the figure from Thanksgiving, when 1,951 were in the hospital. ICUs across Los Angeles County are essentially full, and on Christmas, 1,368 people with COVID-19 were in the ICU, nearly triple the comparable figure from Thanksgiving, when 484 were in the ICU.
The surge in cases can be seen throughout the region.
On Saturday, Orange County also broke the record for highest count of new coronavirus cases in a single day, with 5,953 cases, breaking the record last set on Dec. 20, when 4,606 cases were reported. Orange County has averaged about 3,500 new coronavirus cases a day over the past week.
Orange County on Saturday also posted its highest tally of COVID-19 deaths reported in a single day Saturday, with 63 new deaths, breaking the record last set on Sept. 29, when 33 deaths were reported. Orange County has averaged 12 deaths a day over the past week.
Tracking coronavirus in Orange County The latest maps and charts on the spread of COVID-19 in Orange County, including cases, deaths, closures and restrictions.
Cumulatively, California has reported 2.1 million coronavirus cases, and, on Saturday, pushed past another sobering milestone: more than 24,000 deaths. At least 234 deaths were reported statewide Saturday, according to The Times’ independent county-by-county tally, and at least 24,200 deaths were reported.
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If current trends continue, the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation forecasts that California could tally a cumulative total of more than 70,000 deaths by April 1. An additional 15,000 would die if mandates are eased, while 10,000 fewer people would die if virtually everyone wore masks when outside the home.
With Christmas over, and many people defying pleas by authorities to skip holiday gatherings, Los Angeles County health officials are now urging people who traveled over the holiday to quarantine themselves for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness. Quarantining keeps people at home as much as possible, with groceries and restaurant food delivered to avoid spreading the virus in the community.
“We’re really working right now on dealing with the fact that we think there is a lot of traveling,” Ferrer said the day before Christmas. “And that means when people come back, we need them to do that self-quarantine for those 10 days.”


latimes--2020-12-27--Southern California will likely face extended stay-at-home order after holiday surge in coronavirus

Southern California will likely face extended stay-at-home order after holiday surge in coronavirus cases

A holiday surge in coronavirus cases may result in extended stay-at-home orders for Southern California and other areas .
The earliest date that Southern California could have become eligible to exit the existing order was Monday , but state officials said Sunday that the region and several other areas of the state would likely have to continue following the restrictions for several more weeks as the recent surge is pushing hospitals to the breaking point .
The restrictions include reduced capacity at retail stores ; the closure of some businesses including hair salons , nail salons , card rooms , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a prohibition on most gatherings , hotel stays for tourism and outdoor restaurant dining .
Last week , Gov .
Gavin Newsom expressed doubt that the Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions would emerge from the state order by Monday due to a steady erosion of intensive care unit beds for COVID-19 patients .
Stay-at-home orders will remain in effect until the region ’ s projected ICU capacity is equal to or greater than 15 % , according to state guidance .
In the Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s 58 counties — the current available ICU capacity stands at 0 % .
That doesn ’ t mean there are no unoccupied ICU beds at all , as the state uses a weighted formula to ensure that some remain open for patients who don ’ t have COVID-19 .
But officials and experts warn that an overcrowded ICU can overburden doctors and nurses , imperiling the quality of care for everyone , including COVID-19 patients , heart attack victims and those who were seriously injured in a car accident .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Home Order will extend for many regions in California , ” the California Department of Public Health said in a statement Sunday .
Once a county reaches the ICU threshold of 15 % capacity or greater , it must maintain that status for four weeks .
The agency reported that the state has 2,122,806 confirmed cases to date , with over 24,000 deaths .
There were more than 50,000 newly recorded confirmed cases on Saturday .
On Saturday , Los Angeles County health officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — 15,538 cases — were delayed because of an interruption with Spectrum internet service in the L.A. area .
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period .
The county averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the past week .
Hospitals throughout the county are overwhelmed .
Some are running dangerously low on their supplies of oxygen , critical to treating severely ill COVID-19 patients who have begun to suffocate on account of their virus-inflamed lungs .
Emergency rooms are so overcrowded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as eight hours to drop off patients or are sometimes sent to hospitals farther away .
Under one scenario , experts predict there could be a boost in new coronavirus cases by mid-January , a surge in hospitalizations by late January and early February , and another burst of deaths by early to mid-February .
The quick succession of holidays in the fall and winter months typically allows people to celebrate and spend time with loved ones in a brief period .
But that leaves little time for coronavirus cases to start falling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on top of surges .
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley , a medical epidemiologist and infectious disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health , said a person who is exposed to COVID-19 at a Christmas gathering could be infectious by New Year ’ s Eve .
However , the individual may be asymptomatic , go to a New Year ’ s Eve party and unknowingly spread the disease , he said .
Coupled with a high infection rate — about 1 in 95 in Los Angeles County are contagious with the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ holidays are creating a “ viral wildfire , ” he said .

A holiday surge in coronavirus cases may result in extended stay-at-home orders for Southern California and other areas.
The earliest date that Southern California could have become eligible to exit the existing order was Monday, but state officials said Sunday that the region and several other areas of the state would likely have to continue following the restrictions for several more weeks as the recent surge is pushing hospitals to the breaking point.
The restrictions include reduced capacity at retail stores; the closure of some businesses including hair salons, nail salons, card rooms, museums, zoos and aquariums; and a prohibition on most gatherings, hotel stays for tourism and outdoor restaurant dining.
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Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom expressed doubt that the Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions would emerge from the state order by Monday due to a steady erosion of intensive care unit beds for COVID-19 patients.
Stay-at-home orders will remain in effect until the region’s projected ICU capacity is equal to or greater than 15%, according to state guidance. In the Southern California and San Joaquin Valley regions — which combined cover 23 of California’s 58 counties — the current available ICU capacity stands at 0%.
That doesn’t mean there are no unoccupied ICU beds at all, as the state uses a weighted formula to ensure that some remain open for patients who don’t have COVID-19. But officials and experts warn that an overcrowded ICU can overburden doctors and nurses, imperiling the quality of care for everyone, including COVID-19 patients, heart attack victims and those who were seriously injured in a car accident.
“It is likely that the Regional Stay at Home Order will extend for many regions in California,” the California Department of Public Health said in a statement Sunday. Once a county reaches the ICU threshold of 15% capacity or greater, it must maintain that status for four weeks.
The agency reported that the state has 2,122,806 confirmed cases to date, with over 24,000 deaths. There were more than 50,000 newly recorded confirmed cases on Saturday.
On Saturday, Los Angeles County health officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and Saturday combined. Friday’s numbers — 15,538 cases — were delayed because of an interruption with Spectrum internet service in the L.A. area.
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period. The county averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the past week.
Hospitals throughout the county are overwhelmed. Some are running dangerously low on their supplies of oxygen, critical to treating severely ill COVID-19 patients who have begun to suffocate on account of their virus-inflamed lungs. Emergency rooms are so overcrowded that ambulances have to wait as long as eight hours to drop off patients or are sometimes sent to hospitals farther away.
Under one scenario, experts predict there could be a boost in new coronavirus cases by mid-January, a surge in hospitalizations by late January and early February, and another burst of deaths by early to mid-February.
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The quick succession of holidays in the fall and winter months typically allows people to celebrate and spend time with loved ones in a brief period.
But that leaves little time for coronavirus cases to start falling before they spike again, creating surges on top of surges.
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, a medical epidemiologist and infectious disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, said a person who is exposed to COVID-19 at a Christmas gathering could be infectious by New Year’s Eve.
However, the individual may be asymptomatic, go to a New Year’s Eve party and unknowingly spread the disease, he said.
Coupled with a high infection rate — about 1 in 95 in Los Angeles County are contagious with the virus, according to county estimates — the holidays are creating a “viral wildfire,” he said.


latimes--2020-12-27--Officials ID man killed at illegal street racing event in Carson on Christmas

Officials have identified a 66-year-old man who died on Christmas Day after a car reportedly lost control during an illegal @ @ @ @ @ into a group of spectators in Carson .
Daniel Patten II of Long Beach died @ @ @ @ @ , according to the Los Angeles County coroner ’ s office .
The Daily Breeze @ @ @ @ @ racing and crashed into each other near a crowd of people .
The collision happened @ @ @ @ @ 900 block of 230th Street , said the L.A. County Sheriff ’ s Department .
@ @ @ @ @ who sustained injuries but their conditions are unknown .
There are no suspects in custody @

A 66-year-old man died on Christmas Day after reportedly being struck during an illegal street racing event.
Officials have identified a 66-year-old man who died on Christmas Day after a car reportedly lost control during an illegal street racing event and plowed into a group of spectators in Carson.
Daniel Patten II of Long Beach died after the incident Friday afternoon, according to the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.
The Daily Breeze reported that two cars were racing and crashed into each other near a crowd of people. The collision happened around 1:45 p.m. in the 900 block of 230th Street, said the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department.
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There were five additional victims who sustained injuries but their conditions are unknown.
There are no suspects in custody.


latimes--2020-12-27--Tens of thousands expected to travel, pass through LAX in coming week

Tens of thousands of travelers are expected to pass through Los Angeles International Airport this week , amid an alarming surge in coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County and pleas from public health officials for people to stay home and avoid gathering with family and friends outside their households .
The global COVID-19 pandemic drastically reduced air travel this year — in the early part of the pandemic , airport volume was down by as much as 96 % compared with the same time last year — but the number of people traveling ticked up around Thanksgiving and again before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Security Administration screened 1.176 million passengers the Sunday after Thanksgiving , one of the busiest travel days of the year — and 1.191 million passengers the day before Christmas Eve , according to agency data .
Many are expected to begin returning home to Southern California on Sunday .
At LAX , the busiest day during the pandemic came Nov. 20 , when TSA officials screened about 44,000 travelers , according to airport data .
Dec. 23 came in as a close second , with about 43,000 travelers passing through .
Officials expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ busy travel day as many people return home after Christmas .
Stephanie Sampson , a spokeswoman for the airport , said it ’ s been hard to forecast travel volume amid the pandemic and last-minute cancellations .
“ We haven ’ t been making any predictions because we just don ’ t know , ” she said .
Travelers arriving at LAX from other states or countries must self-quarantine for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness .
Quarantining also keeps people at home as much as possible , with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spreading the virus in the community .
The Auto Club of Southern California forecast that 5.7 million Southern Californians would travel during the year-end period between Dec. 23 and Jan. 3 , with the overwhelming majority of those expected to travel by car .
Just 355,000 Southern California residents were expected to travel by air during this time — a drop of 54 % compared with last year .
“ People feel a lot more comfortable in a car with members of their own household , ” Auto Club spokesman Doug Shupe said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ predicted some travelers would cancel their plans in the days leading up to Christmas and New Year ’ s as the number of COVID-19 cases surged , as was the trend during Thanksgiving .
Still , plenty of passengers did travel and gather with family and friends for Thanksgiving , contributing to what public health officials have called “ a surge upon a surge ” of COVID-19 cases , which have inundated hospital intensive care unit beds and pushed the Los Angeles County health system beyond the brink of capacity .
On Saturday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new coronavirus cases over a two-day period , beginning Christmas Day .
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period .
The county has averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the last week .
has now reported a total of more than 707,000 coronavirus cases and more than 9,440 deaths .
“ We really can ’ t afford to repeat the mistakes of Thanksgiving , ” Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said last week .
“ Another spike in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disastrous for our hospital system , and ultimately will mean many more people simply won ’ t be with us in 2021 .
”

Tens of thousands of travelers are expected to pass through Los Angeles International Airport this week, amid an alarming surge in coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County and pleas from public health officials for people to stay home and avoid gathering with family and friends outside their households.
The global COVID-19 pandemic drastically reduced air travel this year — in the early part of the pandemic, airport volume was down by as much as 96% compared with the same time last year — but the number of people traveling ticked up around Thanksgiving and again before Christmas, officials said.
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The Transportation Security Administration screened 1.176 million passengers the Sunday after Thanksgiving, one of the busiest travel days of the year — and 1.191 million passengers the day before Christmas Eve, according to agency data. Many are expected to begin returning home to Southern California on Sunday.
At LAX, the busiest day during the pandemic came Nov. 20, when TSA officials screened about 44,000 travelers, according to airport data. Dec. 23 came in as a close second, with about 43,000 travelers passing through. Officials expected a similar number Sunday, typically another busy travel day as many people return home after Christmas.
Stephanie Sampson, a spokeswoman for the airport, said it’s been hard to forecast travel volume amid the pandemic and last-minute cancellations.
“We haven’t been making any predictions because we just don’t know,” she said.
Travelers arriving at LAX from other states or countries must self-quarantine for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness. Quarantining also keeps people at home as much as possible, with groceries and restaurant food delivered to avoid spreading the virus in the community.
The Auto Club of Southern California forecast that 5.7 million Southern Californians would travel during the year-end period between Dec. 23 and Jan. 3, with the overwhelming majority of those expected to travel by car. Just 355,000 Southern California residents were expected to travel by air during this time — a drop of 54% compared with last year.
“People feel a lot more comfortable in a car with members of their own household,” Auto Club spokesman Doug Shupe said.
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Earlier this month the Auto Club predicted some travelers would cancel their plans in the days leading up to Christmas and New Year’s as the number of COVID-19 cases surged, as was the trend during Thanksgiving.
Still, plenty of passengers did travel and gather with family and friends for Thanksgiving, contributing to what public health officials have called “a surge upon a surge” of COVID-19 cases, which have inundated hospital intensive care unit beds and pushed the Los Angeles County health system beyond the brink of capacity.
On Saturday, county health officials reported nearly 30,000 new coronavirus cases over a two-day period, beginning Christmas Day. Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period. The county has averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the last week.
Los Angeles County has now reported a total of more than 707,000 coronavirus cases and more than 9,440 deaths.
“We really can’t afford to repeat the mistakes of Thanksgiving,” Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said last week. “Another spike in cases from the winter holidays will be disastrous for our hospital system, and ultimately will mean many more people simply won’t be with us in 2021.”


latimes--2020-12-27--Earthquake: Magnitude 3.2 quake hits near Prunedale, Calif.

A magnitude 3.2 earthquake was reported Sunday morning at 11:05 a.m. Pacific time one mile from Prunedale , Calif. , according to the U.S. Geological Survey .
The Northern California earthquake occurred seven miles from Hollister , eight miles from Salinas , eight miles from Gilroy and 10 miles from Watsonville .
In the last 10 days , there has been one earthquake of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby .
An average of 234 earthquakes with magnitudes between 3.0 and 4.0 occur per year in California and Nevada , according to a recent three-year data sample .
The earthquake @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Did you feel this earthquake ?
Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS .
Even if you didn ’ t feel this small earthquake , you never know when the Big One is going to strike .
Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit .
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot , a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS .
A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published .
If you ’ re interested in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our list of frequently asked questions .

A magnitude 3.2 earthquake was reported Sunday at 11:05 a.m. one mile from Prunedale, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
A magnitude 3.2 earthquake was reported Sunday morning at 11:05 a.m. Pacific time one mile from Prunedale, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The Northern California earthquake occurred seven miles from Hollister, eight miles from Salinas, eight miles from Gilroy and 10 miles from Watsonville.
In the last 10 days, there has been one earthquake of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby.
An average of 234 earthquakes with magnitudes between 3.0 and 4.0 occur per year in California and Nevada, according to a recent three-year data sample.
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The earthquake occurred at a depth of 2.2 miles. Did you feel this earthquake? Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS.
Even if you didn’t feel this small earthquake, you never know when the Big One is going to strike. Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit.
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot, a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS. A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published. If you’re interested in learning more about the system, visit our list of frequently asked questions.


latimes--2020-12-27--First significant storm of season will bring rain, snow to Southern California

The first considerable storm of the season will hit Southern California overnight , bringing rain and snow ahead of the new year .
Rain will move into Ventura and Los Angeles counties Sunday evening , with the first peak after midnight into mid-morning Monday , according to David Sweet , a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard .
A second wave will cross L.A. County later in the afternoon Monday and will continue into the early evening .
Although that wave is expected to be more intense , it ’ s expected to be shorter in duration , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an inch of rain is expected for coastal and valley areas and one to two inches in the foothills .
In the mountains , six to 12 inches of snow is expected and there might be an inch or two of snow accumulating on top of the Grapevine late Monday .
“ It ’ s a very healthy storm , ” Sweet said .
“ Hopefully this will relieve our high fire danger for a period of time .
I can ’ t say it ’ ll relieve it entirely , but it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Temperatures are expected to drop to the 50s on Monday throughout the region , with a high of 57 degrees expected in downtown Los Angeles .
The rain is expected to clear up by Tuesday , but temperatures will remain on the cool side .
A cold weather alert is in effect through Wednesday for parts of Lancaster and the Santa Clarita Valley , with near-freezing or freezing temperatures expected overnight in those areas , according to the weather service .

Passing rain clouds provide another colorful sunset as seen over the Hollywood Reservoir on Thursday.
The first considerable storm of the season will hit Southern California overnight, bringing rain and snow ahead of the new year.
Rain will move into Ventura and Los Angeles counties Sunday evening, with the first peak after midnight into mid-morning Monday, according to David Sweet, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.
A second wave will cross L.A. County later in the afternoon Monday and will continue into the early evening. Although that wave is expected to be more intense, it’s expected to be shorter in duration, Sweet said.
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Half an inch to an inch of rain is expected for coastal and valley areas and one to two inches in the foothills. In the mountains, six to 12 inches of snow is expected and there might be an inch or two of snow accumulating on top of the Grapevine late Monday.
“It’s a very healthy storm,” Sweet said. “Hopefully this will relieve our high fire danger for a period of time. I can’t say it’ll relieve it entirely, but it might provide at least a brief respite.”
Temperatures are expected to drop to the 50s on Monday throughout the region, with a high of 57 degrees expected in downtown Los Angeles. The rain is expected to clear up by Tuesday, but temperatures will remain on the cool side.
A cold weather alert is in effect through Wednesday for parts of Lancaster and the Santa Clarita Valley, with near-freezing or freezing temperatures expected overnight in those areas, according to the weather service.


latimes--2020-12-27--Earthquake: Magnitude 3.9 quake strikes near Chico, Calif.

A magnitude 3.9 earthquake was reported Sunday at 6:44 a.m. 14 miles from Chico , Calif. , according to the U.S. Geological Survey .
The Northern California earthquake occurred 20 miles from Oroville , 25 miles from Paradise , 27 miles from Magalia and 28 miles from Yuba City .
In the last 10 days , there have been no earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby .
An average of 234 earthquakes with magnitudes between 3.0 and 4.0 occur per year in California and Nevada , according to a recent three-year data sample .
The earthquake occurred at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you feel this earthquake ?
Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS .
Even if you didn ’ t feel this small earthquake , you never know when the Big One is going to strike .
Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit .
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot , a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS .
A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published .
If you ’ re interested in learning more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of frequently asked questions .

A magnitude 3.9 earthquake was reported Sunday at 6:44 a.m. 14 miles from Chico, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake was reported Sunday at 6:44 a.m. 14 miles from Chico, Calif., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The Northern California earthquake occurred 20 miles from Oroville, 25 miles from Paradise, 27 miles from Magalia and 28 miles from Yuba City.
In the last 10 days, there have been no earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby.
An average of 234 earthquakes with magnitudes between 3.0 and 4.0 occur per year in California and Nevada, according to a recent three-year data sample.
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The earthquake occurred at a depth of 15.3 miles. Did you feel this earthquake? Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS.
Even if you didn’t feel this small earthquake, you never know when the Big One is going to strike. Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit.
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot, a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS. A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published. If you’re interested in learning more about the system, visit our list of frequently asked questions.


latimes--2020-12-27--Surrounded by death, nursing home workers battle management and fear to protect patients

Their faces flickered with hope when she entered their rooms .
“ Did my daughter forget about me ?
” asked one woman , over 80 years old .
“ Does she know I ’ m here ?
” “ Where is my son ?
” begged a man down the hall .
Her answers always reeled them back into despondency .
Crystal Teal explained , as she did every morning , that because of the COVID-19 outbreak , visitors were not allowed .
Teal , a licensed vocational nurse , would normally linger to cheer up her patients , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But now every day was triage , a frantic door-to-door race to keep people alive .
It was early May at Kingston Healthcare Center , a 184-bed skilled nursing facility in Bakersfield .
In the wing where Teal worked , every single one of the 61 residents had COVID-19 .
So did most of the staffers , who largely stayed home , leaving Teal and one other nurse to take care of dozens of patients each .
Before this , the pair would have eight assistants for every shift .
Now , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They had to enlist housekeepers and county paramedics to keep residents fed and cleaned .
A number of patients were falling into catatonic depression , refusing to eat or drink .
Infection control was grievously lacking .
Deaths were mounting .
Every day after Teal finished her 12-hour shift , she sat in her car and sobbed .
No place has been hit harder by the pandemic than skilled nursing homes — and no front-line workers have been hit harder than the caregivers who staff them .
In California facilities alone , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a third of all deaths from the disease statewide .
As the virus ran rampant at one facility after another , the low-wage nurses and certified nursing assistants , or CNAs , were fighting the deadliest battle in the state while all but invisible to the outside world .
Few of the caregivers have dared speak out about the emotional and physical nightmare they were going through — much less about management bent on maintaining profits and cutting corners as things spun out of control .
Denied critical information and protective gear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risked their lives as they were pilloried in the news and social media for killing the people they were paid to care for .
Health privacy laws further prohibited any facility from identifying who was infected , or even who died , keeping the human toll of each outbreak largely reduced to statistics .
The meltdown at Kingston — as recounted by Teal and a co-worker , Christina Lockyer — provides an intimate look at a catastrophe that replayed over and over in major nursing home chains throughout California .
The workers ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Cal/OSHA , the California Department of Public Health , Medicare and the Service Employees International Union Local 2015 , as well as interviews with a resident and the mother of a resident who died .
Union leaders say what occurred there is no anomaly .
“ What happened at Kingston is unforgivable , ” said Arnulfo De La Cruz , executive vice president of SEIU 2015 .
“ And unfortunately , similar egregious behaviors with devastating outcomes have occurred across the state — especially at larger , corporate-run facilities.
” Eugenia Caldwell , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ October at Shandin Hills Behavioral Health Care in San Bernardino after , she said , another nurse was ordered to come to work even though she felt sick and her boyfriend had COVID .
Caldwell had still not been fitted for her medical-grade N95 masks , she said .
Within weeks , 52 residents and 21 staff members had caught the virus .
Caldwell passed it on to her 58-year-old husband , who for a month struggled to breathe .
Shandin Hills ’ administrators did not respond directly to Caldwell ’ s statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ currently in compliance with 100 % of employees fit tested.
” Caldwell blames them for putting profit over the lives of vulnerable residents and workers .
“ They make sure they get their bonuses , ” she said .
“ But they don ’ t worry about their employees and residents.
” Christina Lockyer has worked as a certified nursing assistant at Kingston for 16 years .
She earns $ 13.78 an hour , 78 cents above minimum wage .
Lockyer lives with her boyfriend and two sons , a 16-year-old and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rents one of the few three-bedroom apartments she can afford in Bakersfield , next to the Union Pacific tracks just north of the switching yard .
It ’ s a hard part of town : In March , an 8-year-old girl in the apartment next door was bludgeoned to death , allegedly by her mom ’ s boyfriend .
A few months later , a woman in the building was shot .
But Lockyer , 45 , has a buoyant disposition .
She delights in the human connection and sense of purpose at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the sights and smells of bodily decline that she must clean up and salve .
Her work is a calling .
“ I could work at Walmart and make more money , ” she said .
Her friend Crystal Teal , 34 , has that same feeling of mission .
They both work the same wing of the three-wing facility .
Teal had six children by age 32 , thwarting her childhood dreams of being a heart or brain surgeon .
But she is deeply devoted to her career now , taking online @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nurse with a bachelor ’ s degree , and , she hopes , a nurse practitioner someday .
“ Good morning , Papa , ” she sings as she steps into one of her favorite resident ’ s rooms .
He is well over 90 , thin as a post , stubborn and fiercely independent .
He walks around on his own , cleans himself and dresses himself as nattily as he can .
He resists when she does anything for him that he feels he can do for himself .
“ No @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do it , ” he says .
But when she does it anyway , Papa always breaks sentimental : “ I love you so much.
” “ I know you do , come on now , ” she says .
She buys him little presents now and then .
Ever since he was recently moved to another wing , he has moseyed on over to her nursing station every day to see her .
For these more lucid residents , Teal feels like part of their family — a realization that carries both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were stopped in March , this has become their entire world .
She gets to go home every night .
For Lockyer , the relationship is even more fraught .
She sees her father in these residents .
Kenneth Lockyer , a retired supermarket butcher and vintage car tinkerer , has dementia and is in a skilled nursing facility in Los Angeles like this one .
Once a month , before the pandemic , Christina drove over the Tejon Pass and brought him potato chips and a vintage Hot Wheels car that might @ @ @ @ @ @ @ talking .
It usually took until the end of the visit before he ’ d recognize her voice and realize , fleetingly , who she was .
She hasn ’ t seen him for nine months , and fears that the kernel of recognition might disappear forever .
On April 17 , a staff member at Kingston first tested positive for the coronavirus .
Quickly , rumors were circulating that others , including residents , had tested positive .
At the end of their shifts , the caregivers gathered in the lobby to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ demanded to know who was sick .
Lockyer , the union steward at Kingston , said they needed personal protective gear — masks , gowns and face shields .
They asked for hazard pay .
They wanted to get tested .
“ Everybody is scared in this room , ” Lockyer told a manager .
“ You ’ re scared , ” he replied — dismissively , in her view .
The workers got none of their demands .
They had no way to know who might be spreading the disease to whom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from giving it to anyone else .
“ I think our facility ’ s biggest problem was at first they didn ’ t want to let people know we had positive people there , ” Teal said .
“ So instead of stopping it in its tracks , we were spreading it around.
” Kingston Healthcare Center has a history of problems .
Owned by a Beverly Hills rheumatologist , Dr. David Silver , Kingston is labeled a “ special focus facility ” by Medicare , a status reserved for its most problematic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nursing facilities in the state , only six have that designation .
In its last state healthcare inspection , in November 2019 , it had 39 citations , about three times the average in California .
The problems have ranged from small to serious : blinds and sliding glass doors not working , skin infections and dental problems not assessed properly .
One man died when he fell and hit his head trying to go to the bathroom .
The inspectors cited the “ facility ’ s failure to implement their fall prevention @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a high risk of falling .
Silver is also chief executive of Rockport Healthcare Services , which manages the largest chain of for-profit nursing homes in the state , operating 77 facilities in California and providing back office and clinical services at Kingston .
He has touted Rockport ’ s role in creating six COVID treatment centers .
In October , Kingston — which months before had received $ 1.06 million in federal funds through the CARES Act — was hit with a $ 92,500 fine from Cal/OSHA for its poor handling of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were for not implementing adequate measures to reduce disease transmission , not providing adequate protective gear to employees , and not informing employees about which co-workers and residents showed symptoms of infection , allowing the virus to spread .
Silver referred questions to Kingston ’ s administrator , Raj Desai , who said Kingston is appealing the Cal/OSHA citation and disputes all of its findings .
He said that when the first positive test came back , management immediately began testing residents and “ took the initiative to send employees to off-site testing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been in contact with someone positive was notified , ” Desai said .
“ And the staff members knew who was infected because the infected residents were cohorted in a separate area.
” The numbers don ’ t speak to such quarantining : 104 residents ultimately got sick , along with 87 employees .
By April 25 , fear was running rampant with the virus , and many caregivers were not showing up to work .
Administrators agreed to offer $ 3 an hour extra hazard pay to lure them back .
That @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and co-worker Gloria went to an urgent care to get tested .
Gloria received her results the following day : Positive .
Lockyer descended into a spiral of fear .
She must have the virus too , she thought .
She and Gloria worked side by side every day , exposed to the same patients and co-workers .
They even drove together to get tested , without masks .
What if Lockyer passed it to her developmentally disabled son ?
He ’ d be taken to a hospital , alone , where he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what was happening .
He had the cognition of a 5-year-old .
He would think she abandoned him .
She couldn ’ t sleep , her mind whirling through every terrible possibility .
Three days later , Lockyer ’ s test came back negative .
She knew work needed her , even though she was scared to go back .
Teal had stayed on and moved into a friend ’ s vacant apartment so she didn ’ t expose her children and husband to the virus .
She was elated to see Lockyer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ management had disappeared ; many were very sick .
She and her partner , Glenn , were the only nurses for the 61 residents in their wing .
They desperately needed their team of nursing assistants back .
The facility had received some plastic gowns , face shields and N-95 masks from the county health department .
The gowns were like a trash bag with sleeves and left workers drenched in sweat throughout their shift .
They figured that masks must have been in short supply , because supervisors told them to reuse @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The N-95s quickly smelled terrible , the odor of a wet dog in a hot car .
Lockyer threatened to walk out if she didn ’ t get a new one every day .
The nursing supervisor agreed .
But after four days , Lockyer decided she couldn ’ t take the risks .
Infection was still spreading , and she knew she would get it if she stayed .
“ You ’ re picking up every bodily fluid whether you ’ re blowing their nose or cleaning up diarrhea , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doctor , described her exposure and took his recommendation to quarantine at home for two weeks , using up her entire year ’ s vacation time .
Teal and Glenn made a pact to keep working .
If they left , the last familiar faces would vanish for many patients .
They ’ d lose all hope .
The housekeeping staff stepped in to help , changing diapers , feeding and bathing , rolling people over in bed .
As the crisis worsened , the California Department of Public Health sent a “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kingston to establish protocols to stop transmission of the virus .
The state also dispatched county paramedics to fill in for staff and distribute loads of personal protective gear , including thousands of N95 masks .
All the help was desperately needed .
The paramedics saved the outbreak from becoming even more disastrous .
But they had different skills than the nursing staff ; they weren ’ t there to comfort a bewildered widow or grandfather .
And they were outfitted with full-body hazmat-type suits and respirators that made the interactions more alien @ @ @ @ @ @ @ outside Kingston .
Teal saw on television that her facility was responsible for half the COVID cases in the county .
State inspectors came every day with improvised rules for quarantining the COVID-positive patients .
She thought the process was chaotic at first , and the tests were unreliable .
“ Everyone is being exposed because literally every day we ’ re moving residents between A , B , and C wing because the state is telling us how we should rearrange the building , ” Teal said .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ days later , we ’ re unlocking them .
This side is positive .
This side is negative .
This side is observation .
... You got CNAs floating from other sections .
There was so much confusion.
” Teal ’ s wing ultimately became “ the red zone , ” where the bulk of COVID patients were placed .
Lisa Bennink , 61 , came to Kingston in March to rehabilitate her legs after six weeks in a hospital bed battling heart problems .
She said she was moved from room to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wings , even after she tested positive for the coronavirus — and no one monitored who came and went through the clear plastic doors sealing off the infected areas .
“ People with dementia and Alzheimer ’ s would unzip it and go on in , ” she said .
Laura Ehlers called Kingston on May 7 to find out how her mother , Francia Hernandez , was doing .
She was told her mother did not have COVID but , upon further questioning , that her mother ’ s roommate did .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to another room ?
” she asked .
“ That ’ s not possible , ” she was told .
Ehlers — a senior researcher for the the National Academies of Sciences , Engineering , and Medicine , who lives in Boston — provided The Times a text she sent to a friend that day : “ I spoke to my mom ’ s nurse today .
They say she is fine .
...
But , she is sharing a room with someone who has it .
This is distressing but they have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of infected patients.
” Desai , the administrator , said this did not happen : “ We reviewed all of our records and at no time were any COVID-positive residents allowed to be in rooms with COVID-negative residents.
” He added that he could not be more specific because of health privacy laws .
Hernandez ’ s health records show she was not moved from her room even as it became part of the red zone .
The next update Ehlers received about her mom was on May 16 , when she got @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Hernandez was struggling to breathe , with severe COVID .
She died less than 30 hours later .
Paramedics were wheeling ever more residents out the back entrance to waiting ambulances .
Teal was particularly worried about one of her favorites , a husky man who was having a hard time breathing .
In normal times , he knew every nurse and assistant by name and constantly called out for things he could do himself .
“ Crystal , can you hand me my remote .
...
Crystal , can you get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ QVC all day .
When she guided his wheelchair , she told him she needed him to help push the wheels .
He said he couldn ’ t .
But he put his arms through the motions , and the truth was , she was never pushing at all .
Now he asked her every time she left his room : “ Are you coming back tomorrow ?
” After working 12 or 14 hours each day , she drove back to her empty apartment , stuffed her clothes into a plastic bag @ @ @ @ @ @ @ passages with a neti pot and tried to do some homework for her bachelor ’ s program .
Teal said her husband , a union pipe welder whose work dried up during the pandemic , didn ’ t understand why she kept going in .
“ You can get unemployment and make more money , ” he said .
Her children wanted her to come home too .
She missed them dearly and was worried about her 4-year-old boy , who had asthma , and her 2-year-old son , who needed respiratory treatments @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want to talk to you , ” her husband would say on the phone .
Then one would get on to complain about his cooking or say they ’ d “ been eating McDonald ’ s for three days.
” Teal never felt so torn apart for doing her job .
In news and social media , it seemed as if the nurses were blamed for the outbreak .
Teal heard a comment secondhand from a friend about her being one of the nurses “ killing all those people.
” At work , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began hearing about the fates of other co-workers .
One CNA spread the disease to her parents , who were both in intensive care .
Another worker was on a ventilator .
Lockyer ’ s friend Gloria recovered and returned to work .
In the COVID unit , hazard pay had been bumped up to $ 7 an hour on top of regular wages .
Lockyer came back May 14 .
The outbreak was still churning through the building .
One morning , Teal arrived at the nursing station to get the update @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been a death : her QVC-watching friend .
He had been calling out Teal ’ s name all night before he passed .
Teal worked 28 straight days through the worst part of the outbreak , followed by a day off , then two more weeks on the job before her next break .
Teal was tested for the first time in early July , she said , and was positive .
By the time she learned , she was already on her back with a splitting headache .
She barely moved for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and lost 13 pounds .
When she recovered , she went back to work .
The resident she called Papa paid his visit from another wing and lighted up with excitement .
“ Oh my God , I thought you were never coming back , ” he said .
“ I thought you forgot about me.
” She teared up at all this implied : his loneliness , her burden .
In the end , 19 of the residents who caught COVID died and all employees survived .
Many recovered with no major @ @ @ @ @ @ @ same .
Teal heard that the CNA who was on a ventilator is now living in a skilled nursing home herself .
Kingston had revoked the workers ’ hazard pay on June 16 .
The next day , many signed a union petition to reinstate it .
Desai said that hazard pay lasted for a full two months after the last positive test on May 15 .
The nurses say that ’ s not true ; Why would they sign a petition if it was ?
Teal separated from her husband shortly after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ couldn ’ t understand her commitment to the job .
They finalized their divorce in November .
This month , Teal asked Papa what he wanted for Christmas .
“ I know what I ’ m going to get you , ” she said .
“ Suspenders , ” she said .
He could barely keep his pants up .
The next day he sidled up next to her in the hall .
He ’ d been rethinking .
“ When you get me those , make sure they have the clip on @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Their faces flickered with hope when she entered their rooms.
“Did my daughter forget about me?” asked one woman, over 80 years old. “Does she know I’m here?”
“Where is my son?” begged a man down the hall.
Her answers always reeled them back into despondency.
Crystal Teal explained, as she did every morning, that because of the COVID-19 outbreak, visitors were not allowed. Teal, a licensed vocational nurse, would normally linger to cheer up her patients, chat about their families, joke around. But now every day was triage, a frantic door-to-door race to keep people alive.
During a COVID-19 outbreak at Kingston Healthcare Center in Bakersfield, 104 residents were sickened and 19 died. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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It was early May at Kingston Healthcare Center, a 184-bed skilled nursing facility in Bakersfield. In the wing where Teal worked, every single one of the 61 residents had COVID-19. So did most of the staffers, who largely stayed home, leaving Teal and one other nurse to take care of dozens of patients each.
Before this, the pair would have eight assistants for every shift. Now, on many days, they had zero. They had to enlist housekeepers and county paramedics to keep residents fed and cleaned. A number of patients were falling into catatonic depression, refusing to eat or drink. Infection control was grievously lacking. Deaths were mounting.
Every day after Teal finished her 12-hour shift, she sat in her car and sobbed.
No place has been hit harder by the pandemic than skilled nursing homes — and no front-line workers have been hit harder than the caregivers who staff them. In California facilities alone, COVID-19 has taken more than 8,200 lives, a third of all deaths from the disease statewide. As the virus ran rampant at one facility after another, the low-wage nurses and certified nursing assistants, or CNAs, were fighting the deadliest battle in the state while all but invisible to the outside world.
Few of the caregivers have dared speak out about the emotional and physical nightmare they were going through — much less about management bent on maintaining profits and cutting corners as things spun out of control. Denied critical information and protective gear they needed to avoid infection, they risked their lives as they were pilloried in the news and social media for killing the people they were paid to care for.
Health privacy laws further prohibited any facility from identifying who was infected, or even who died, keeping the human toll of each outbreak largely reduced to statistics.
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California The pandemic’s toll: Lives lost in California Hundreds of people have died in California due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These are some of their stories.
The meltdown at Kingston — as recounted by Teal and a co-worker, Christina Lockyer — provides an intimate look at a catastrophe that replayed over and over in major nursing home chains throughout California.
The workers’ accounts are backed up by records from Cal/OSHA, the California Department of Public Health, Medicare and the Service Employees International Union Local 2015, as well as interviews with a resident and the mother of a resident who died. Union leaders say what occurred there is no anomaly.
“What happened at Kingston is unforgivable,” said Arnulfo De La Cruz, executive vice president of SEIU 2015. “And unfortunately, similar egregious behaviors with devastating outcomes have occurred across the state — especially at larger, corporate-run facilities.”
Eugenia Caldwell, a 54-year-old nurse, caught COVID-19 in October at Shandin Hills Behavioral Health Care in San Bernardino after, she said, another nurse was ordered to come to work even though she felt sick and her boyfriend had COVID. Caldwell had still not been fitted for her medical-grade N95 masks, she said. Within weeks, 52 residents and 21 staff members had caught the virus. Caldwell passed it on to her 58-year-old husband, who for a month struggled to breathe.
Shandin Hills’ administrators did not respond directly to Caldwell’s statement, but said the facility “is currently in compliance with 100% of employees fit tested.”
Caldwell blames them for putting profit over the lives of vulnerable residents and workers.
“They make sure they get their bonuses,” she said. “But they don’t worry about their employees and residents.”
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Certified nursing assistant Christina Lockyer at home with her son Steven, who has Down syndrome. Her greatest fear was bringing the virus home — because if he caught it, he would be taken to the hospital alone and would not be able to understand what was happening. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Christina Lockyer has worked as a certified nursing assistant at Kingston for 16 years. She earns $13.78 an hour, 78 cents above minimum wage.
Lockyer lives with her boyfriend and two sons, a 16-year-old and a 28-year-old who has Down syndrome. She rents one of the few three-bedroom apartments she can afford in Bakersfield, next to the Union Pacific tracks just north of the switching yard. It’s a hard part of town: In March, an 8-year-old girl in the apartment next door was bludgeoned to death, allegedly by her mom’s boyfriend. A few months later, a woman in the building was shot.
Column One A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times. More Stories
But Lockyer, 45, has a buoyant disposition. She delights in the human connection and sense of purpose at her work. She is unfazed by the sights and smells of bodily decline that she must clean up and salve. Her work is a calling. “I could work at Walmart and make more money,” she said.
Her friend Crystal Teal, 34, has that same feeling of mission. They both work the same wing of the three-wing facility.
Teal had six children by age 32, thwarting her childhood dreams of being a heart or brain surgeon. But she is deeply devoted to her career now, taking online courses at night to become a registered nurse with a bachelor’s degree, and, she hopes, a nurse practitioner someday.
A sign in front of Kingston Healthcare Center in Bakersfield reads “Heroes work here.” (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
“Good morning, Papa,” she sings as she steps into one of her favorite resident’s rooms. He is well over 90, thin as a post, stubborn and fiercely independent. He walks around on his own, cleans himself and dresses himself as nattily as he can. He resists when she does anything for him that he feels he can do for himself. “No, no, no, I can do it,” he says.
But when she does it anyway, Papa always breaks sentimental: “I love you so much.”
“I know you do, come on now,” she says.
She buys him little presents now and then.
Kingston Healthcare Center has a history of problems. Owned by a Beverly Hills rheumatologist, Dr. David Silver, it is labeled a “special focus facility” by Medicare, a status reserved for its most problematic nursing homes. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Ever since he was recently moved to another wing, he has moseyed on over to her nursing station every day to see her.
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For these more lucid residents, Teal feels like part of their family — a realization that carries both joy and profound sadness. Since visits were stopped in March, this has become their entire world. She gets to go home every night.
For Lockyer, the relationship is even more fraught. She sees her father in these residents. Kenneth Lockyer, a retired supermarket butcher and vintage car tinkerer, has dementia and is in a skilled nursing facility in Los Angeles like this one. Once a month, before the pandemic, Christina drove over the Tejon Pass and brought him potato chips and a vintage Hot Wheels car that might get his memory churning and his mouth talking. It usually took until the end of the visit before he’d recognize her voice and realize, fleetingly, who she was.
She hasn’t seen him for nine months, and fears that the kernel of recognition might disappear forever.
In its last state healthcare inspection in November 2019, Kingston had 39 citations, about three times the average in California. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
On April 17, a staff member at Kingston first tested positive for the coronavirus. Quickly, rumors were circulating that others, including residents, had tested positive.
At the end of their shifts, the caregivers gathered in the lobby to get answers from their bosses. They demanded to know who was sick. Lockyer, the union steward at Kingston, said they needed personal protective gear — masks, gowns and face shields. They asked for hazard pay. They wanted to get tested.
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“Everybody is scared in this room,” Lockyer told a manager.
“You’re scared,” he replied — dismissively, in her view.
The workers got none of their demands. They had no way to know who might be spreading the disease to whom, how to avoid it or keep from giving it to anyone else.
“I think our facility’s biggest problem was at first they didn’t want to let people know we had positive people there,” Teal said. “So instead of stopping it in its tracks, we were spreading it around.”
Kingston Healthcare Center has a history of problems. Owned by a Beverly Hills rheumatologist, Dr. David Silver, Kingston is labeled a “special focus facility” by Medicare, a status reserved for its most problematic nursing homes. Of 1,230 long-term skilled nursing facilities in the state, only six have that designation.
In its last state healthcare inspection, in November 2019, it had 39 citations, about three times the average in California. The problems have ranged from small to serious: blinds and sliding glass doors not working, skin infections and dental problems not assessed properly. One man died when he fell and hit his head trying to go to the bathroom. The inspectors cited the “facility’s failure to implement their fall prevention policy” for the 86 residents at a high risk of falling.
Silver is also chief executive of Rockport Healthcare Services, which manages the largest chain of for-profit nursing homes in the state, operating 77 facilities in California and providing back office and clinical services at Kingston. He has touted Rockport’s role in creating six COVID treatment centers.
In October, Kingston — which months before had received $1.06 million in federal funds through the CARES Act — was hit with a $92,500 fine from Cal/OSHA for its poor handling of the spring outbreak. The major violations were for not implementing adequate measures to reduce disease transmission, not providing adequate protective gear to employees, and not informing employees about which co-workers and residents showed symptoms of infection, allowing the virus to spread.
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Silver referred questions to Kingston’s administrator, Raj Desai, who said Kingston is appealing the Cal/OSHA citation and disputes all of its findings.
He said that when the first positive test came back, management immediately began testing residents and “took the initiative to send employees to off-site testing centers.”
“Anyone who may have been in contact with someone positive was notified,” Desai said. “And the staff members knew who was infected because the infected residents were cohorted in a separate area.”
The numbers don’t speak to such quarantining: 104 residents ultimately got sick, along with 87 employees.
By April 25, fear was running rampant with the virus, and many caregivers were not showing up to work. Administrators agreed to offer $3 an hour extra hazard pay to lure them back. That morning, Lockyer and her best friend and co-worker Gloria went to an urgent care to get tested. Gloria received her results the following day: Positive.
Lockyer descended into a spiral of fear. She must have the virus too, she thought. She and Gloria worked side by side every day, exposed to the same patients and co-workers. They even drove together to get tested, without masks. What if Lockyer passed it to her developmentally disabled son? He’d be taken to a hospital, alone, where he wouldn’t be able to understand what was happening. He had the cognition of a 5-year-old. He would think she abandoned him.
She couldn’t sleep, her mind whirling through every terrible possibility.
Three days later, Lockyer’s test came back negative.
She knew work needed her, even though she was scared to go back.
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Teal had stayed on and moved into a friend’s vacant apartment so she didn’t expose her children and husband to the virus.
She was elated to see Lockyer return. Most of the staff and management had disappeared; many were very sick. She and her partner, Glenn, were the only nurses for the 61 residents in their wing. They desperately needed their team of nursing assistants back.
The facility had received some plastic gowns, face shields and N-95 masks from the county health department. The gowns were like a trash bag with sleeves and left workers drenched in sweat throughout their shift. They figured that masks must have been in short supply, because supervisors told them to reuse them for up to four shifts. The N-95s quickly smelled terrible, the odor of a wet dog in a hot car. Lockyer threatened to walk out if she didn’t get a new one every day. The nursing supervisor agreed.
But after four days, Lockyer decided she couldn’t take the risks. Infection was still spreading, and she knew she would get it if she stayed.
“You’re picking up every bodily fluid whether you’re blowing their nose or cleaning up diarrhea,” she said.
She went to her family doctor, described her exposure and took his recommendation to quarantine at home for two weeks, using up her entire year’s vacation time.
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Teal and Glenn made a pact to keep working. If they left, the last familiar faces would vanish for many patients. They’d lose all hope.
The housekeeping staff stepped in to help, changing diapers, feeding and bathing, rolling people over in bed. As the crisis worsened, the California Department of Public Health sent a “strike team” of infection-control specialists to Kingston to establish protocols to stop transmission of the virus. The state also dispatched county paramedics to fill in for staff and distribute loads of personal protective gear, including thousands of N95 masks. All the help was desperately needed.
The paramedics saved the outbreak from becoming even more disastrous. But they had different skills than the nursing staff; they weren’t there to comfort a bewildered widow or grandfather. And they were outfitted with full-body hazmat-type suits and respirators that made the interactions more alien and terrifying.
News vans were parked outside Kingston. Teal saw on television that her facility was responsible for half the COVID cases in the county. State inspectors came every day with improvised rules for quarantining the COVID-positive patients. She thought the process was chaotic at first, and the tests were unreliable.
“Everyone is being exposed because literally every day we’re moving residents between A, B, and C wing because the state is telling us how we should rearrange the building,” Teal said. “We’re locking off sections one day. Three days later, we’re unlocking them. This side is positive. This side is negative. This side is observation. ... You got CNAs floating from other sections. There was so much confusion.”
Teal’s wing ultimately became “the red zone,” where the bulk of COVID patients were placed.
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Lisa Bennink, 61, came to Kingston in March to rehabilitate her legs after six weeks in a hospital bed battling heart problems. She said she was moved from room to room, with different roommates in different wings, even after she tested positive for the coronavirus — and no one monitored who came and went through the clear plastic doors sealing off the infected areas.
“People with dementia and Alzheimer’s would unzip it and go on in,” she said.
Laura Ehlers called Kingston on May 7 to find out how her mother, Francia Hernandez, was doing. She was told her mother did not have COVID but, upon further questioning, that her mother’s roommate did.
“Can’t you move her to another room?” she asked.
“That’s not possible,” she was told.
Ehlers — a senior researcher for the the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, who lives in Boston — provided The Times a text she sent to a friend that day: “I spoke to my mom’s nurse today. They say she is fine. ... But, she is sharing a room with someone who has it. This is distressing but they have no other options given the high number of infected patients.”
Desai, the administrator, said this did not happen: “We reviewed all of our records and at no time were any COVID-positive residents allowed to be in rooms with COVID-negative residents.” He added that he could not be more specific because of health privacy laws.
Hernandez’s health records show she was not moved from her room even as it became part of the red zone.
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The next update Ehlers received about her mom was on May 16, when she got a call from a Bakersfield emergency room. Hernandez was struggling to breathe, with severe COVID. She died less than 30 hours later.
Paramedics were wheeling ever more residents out the back entrance to waiting ambulances. Teal was particularly worried about one of her favorites, a husky man who was having a hard time breathing. In normal times, he knew every nurse and assistant by name and constantly called out for things he could do himself. “Crystal, can you hand me my remote. ... Crystal, can you get me some water?”
He watched QVC all day. When she guided his wheelchair, she told him she needed him to help push the wheels. He said he couldn’t. But he put his arms through the motions, and the truth was, she was never pushing at all.
Now he asked her every time she left his room: “Are you coming back tomorrow?”
“Of course,” she promised.
After working 12 or 14 hours each day, she drove back to her empty apartment, stuffed her clothes into a plastic bag, showered vigorously, cleaned her nasal passages with a neti pot and tried to do some homework for her bachelor’s program.
Teal said her husband, a union pipe welder whose work dried up during the pandemic, didn’t understand why she kept going in.
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“You can get unemployment and make more money,” he said. Her children wanted her to come home too. She missed them dearly and was worried about her 4-year-old boy, who had asthma, and her 2-year-old son, who needed respiratory treatments. No one understood.
“Kids want to talk to you,” her husband would say on the phone.
Then one would get on to complain about his cooking or say they’d “been eating McDonald’s for three days.”
Teal never felt so torn apart for doing her job.
In news and social media, it seemed as if the nurses were blamed for the outbreak. Teal heard a comment secondhand from a friend about her being one of the nurses “killing all those people.”
At work, as caregivers trickled back in, she began hearing about the fates of other co-workers. One CNA spread the disease to her parents, who were both in intensive care. Another worker was on a ventilator.
Lockyer’s friend Gloria recovered and returned to work. In the COVID unit, hazard pay had been bumped up to $7 an hour on top of regular wages. Lockyer came back May 14.
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The outbreak was still churning through the building.
One morning, Teal arrived at the nursing station to get the update from the night nurse:
There had been a death: her QVC-watching friend. He had been calling out Teal’s name all night before he passed.
Teal worked 28 straight days through the worst part of the outbreak, followed by a day off, then two more weeks on the job before her next break. Teal was tested for the first time in early July, she said, and was positive. By the time she learned, she was already on her back with a splitting headache. She barely moved for four days, couldn’t eat and lost 13 pounds.
When she recovered, she went back to work. The resident she called Papa paid his visit from another wing and lighted up with excitement.
“Oh my God, I thought you were never coming back,” he said. “I thought you forgot about me.”
She teared up at all this implied: his loneliness, her burden.
In the end, 19 of the residents who caught COVID died and all employees survived. Many recovered with no major problems; others will never be the same.
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Teal heard that the CNA who was on a ventilator is now living in a skilled nursing home herself.
Kingston had revoked the workers’ hazard pay on June 16. The next day, many signed a union petition to reinstate it. Desai said that hazard pay lasted for a full two months after the last positive test on May 15. The nurses say that’s not true; Why would they sign a petition if it was?
Teal separated from her husband shortly after the outbreak ended in summer. He couldn’t understand her commitment to the job. They finalized their divorce in November.
This month, Teal asked Papa what he wanted for Christmas.
“No, don’t get me anything.”
“I know what I’m going to get you,” she said.
“I don’t want a gift.”
“Suspenders,” she said. He could barely keep his pants up.
The next day he sidled up next to her in the hall. He’d been rethinking. “When you get me those, make sure they have the clip on the front and the back.”


latimes--2020-12-27--A new post-Christmas COVID-19 surge as holidays create 'viral wildfire'

Los Angeles County health officials are warning of a possible surge in COVID-19 cases following family gatherings and out-of-town trips during the holidays , despite pandemic guidelines that asked the public to stay home .
Under one scenario , experts predict there could be a boost in new coronavirus cases by mid-January , a surge in hospitalizations by late January and early February , and another burst of deaths by early to mid-February .
The quick succession of holidays in the fall and winter months typically allows people to celebrate and spend time with loved ones in a brief period @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus cases to start falling before they spike again , creating surges on top of surges .
People may be getting together in small groups to try to be safe because of the COVID-19 surge , but those interactions can still fuel the spread of the virus , said UCLA infectious disease specialist Dr. Tim Brewer .
“ I ’ m very concerned about the next two months , ” Brewer said .
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley , a medical epidemiologist and infectious disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 at a Christmas gathering could be infectious by New Year ’ s Eve .
However , the individual may be asymptomatic , go to a New Year ’ s Eve party and unknowingly spread the disease , he said .
Coupled with a high infection rate — about 1 in 95 in Los Angeles County are contagious with the virus , according to county estimates — the holidays are creating a “ viral wildfire , ” he said .
In Los Angeles County , the pace of daily deaths is higher than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the coronavirus about every 10 minutes .
On Saturday , county health officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and Saturday combined .
Friday ’ s numbers — 15,538 cases — were delayed because of an interruption with Spectrum internet service in the L.A. area .
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period .
The county averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the past week .
Statewide , the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 continues to rise , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and hospitalizations on Christmas , compared with Thanksgiving .
On Saturday , Orange County broke the record for highest count of new coronavirus cases in a single day , with 5,953 cases , breaking the record last set on Dec. 20 , when 4,606 cases were reported .
The county averaged about 3,500 new coronavirus cases a day over the past week .
Orange County on Saturday also posted its highest tally of COVID-19 deaths reported in a single day , with 63 new deaths , breaking the record last set on Sept. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day .
The county averaged 12 deaths a day over the past week .
In Los Angeles County , COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to 6,815 on Christmas , more than triple the figure from Thanksgiving .
ICUs across Los Angeles County are effectively full , and on Christmas , 1,368 people with COVID-19 were in the ICU , nearly triple the comparable figure from Thanksgiving .
The rate of increase in hospitalizations has slowed recently .
In mid-December , COVID-19 hospitalizations statewide were increasing at nearly 5 % a day ; on Christmas Eve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ less than half a percent each day .
But stable hospitalization numbers at a time when the ICU system across much of the state is bursting at the seams may mean little if gatherings that took place on Christmas result in a huge surge of hospitalizations and deaths in the coming weeks .
A doctor at a public hospital in L.A. County said that physicians from wide-ranging departments are being recruited to help out with an anticipated uptick in COVID-19 patients .
Already , staff have been asked to postpone any vacations they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s getting worse , and we haven ’ t even hit the Christmas or New Years surge yet , ” one doctor at an L.A County hospital said .
“ I feel like the number of people that are going to die because the hospital system is beyond overwhelmed will shoot up.
” The quality of care for COVID-19 patients and others who need hospitalization for another illness or trauma is going to decline if hospitals become more overloaded , said UCLA ’ s Kim-Farley .
UCLA epidemiology department chair Karin Michels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ isolated and deprived of social contact .
But it ’ s important for people to limit contact with those they don ’ t live with and not give up on precautions , she said .
“ For many of us , it will be one of the most significant things in our lifetime ... .it ’ ll be sometime until we ’ re through this , but we need to get through it together , ” she said .
People tend to feel safer indoors and also have a false sense of security @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said Ali Mokdad , an epidemiologist at the University of Washington .
“ These are your loved ones ... You ’ re more likely to take off your mask and let down your guard , ” he said .
Celebrations that bring together multiple generations may be particularly dangerous , with younger people who are more likely to be asymptomatic potentially exposing older , more vulnerable family members , he added .
Mokdad said that his model , run out of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state ’ s surge is being led by indoor gatherings .
His data suggests that California ’ s cases will peak in mid-January .
Before Gov .
Gavin Newsom put in place the stay-at-home order earlier this month , the model predicted a peak in February and there “ would ’ ve been way more infections , ” he said .
California has issued a travel advisory for nonessential travelers , including returning California residents , asking them to quarantine themselves for 10 days upon arrival in the state .
San Francisco and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ requiring travelers to quarantine upon their arrival from places outside the Bay Area — 10 days for San Francisco , 14 days for Santa Clara .
Health officials urged those who traveled over the holidays to quarantine themselves for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness .
“ It ’ s a really big disaster if people come back and then just go straight back to work , ” said L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said on Thursday .
Ferrer also said county inspectors will be scrutinizing malls @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are getting too crowded , increasing the risk for virus transmission .
Under the state ’ s regional stay-at-home orders , shopping malls are supposed to be capped at 20 % of capacity , but it ’ s clear that those limits are not being followed .
“ We ’ re going to take a hard look this weekend at the shopping malls because the pictures we ’ ve been seeing are … another little mini disaster , ” Ferrer said Thursday .
“ The occupancy is supposed to be down to 20 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they look way more crowded than 20 % .
And that just means a complete breakdown of what we are requiring.
” The regional stay-at-home order for Southern California , which went into effect just before midnight Dec. 7 , will last until Tuesday , although state officials have already signaled it is likely to be extended .
If officials do decide they need to take a stronger approach to the existing stay-at-home order , it could either be imposed by the state for the entire region , or by an individual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dr. Jeffrey Gunzenhauser said the overwhelming number of people coming down with COVID-19 in recent weeks has exceeded even the health department ’ s expectations .
The highest number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in L.A. County during the summer surge was around 2,200 .
Now it ’ s more than 6,800 .
“ We were planning to handle a lot , but we just didn ’ t see it going this far , ” Gunzenhauser said .
“ It ’ s heart-wrenching .
”

Soumya Karlamangla, Rong-Gong Lin II, Dakota Smith

A COVID-19 patient who has had a stroke is prepared to be flown from Providence Saint Mary Medical Center to another hospital on Dec. 22.
Los Angeles County health officials are warning of a possible surge in COVID-19 cases following family gatherings and out-of-town trips during the holidays, despite pandemic guidelines that asked the public to stay home.
Under one scenario, experts predict there could be a boost in new coronavirus cases by mid-January, a surge in hospitalizations by late January and early February, and another burst of deaths by early to mid-February.
The quick succession of holidays in the fall and winter months typically allows people to celebrate and spend time with loved ones in a brief period.
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But that leaves little time for coronavirus cases to start falling before they spike again, creating surges on top of surges.
People may be getting together in small groups to try to be safe because of the COVID-19 surge, but those interactions can still fuel the spread of the virus, said UCLA infectious disease specialist Dr. Tim Brewer.
“I’m very concerned about the next two months,” Brewer said.
Nurses Jahmaal Willis, left, and Michelle Yahnke wait for patients in a tent outside Providence Saint Mary Medical Center on Christmas Eve. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
Dr. Robert Kim-Farley, a medical epidemiologist and infectious disease expert at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, said a person who is exposed to COVID-19 at a Christmas gathering could be infectious by New Year’s Eve.
However, the individual may be asymptomatic, go to a New Year’s Eve party and unknowingly spread the disease, he said.
Coupled with a high infection rate — about 1 in 95 in Los Angeles County are contagious with the virus, according to county estimates — the holidays are creating a “viral wildfire,” he said.
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In Los Angeles County, the pace of daily deaths is higher than ever — with a person dying of the coronavirus about every 10 minutes.
On Saturday, county health officials reported 29,423 new coronavirus cases over Christmas Day and Saturday combined. Friday’s numbers — 15,538 cases — were delayed because of an interruption with Spectrum internet service in the L.A. area.
Local health agencies also reported 136 deaths over the two-day period. The county averaged about 14,000 new coronavirus cases a day and 88 COVID-19 deaths daily over the past week.
Statewide, the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 continues to rise, with about triple the number of deaths and hospitalizations on Christmas, compared with Thanksgiving.
On Saturday, Orange County broke the record for highest count of new coronavirus cases in a single day, with 5,953 cases, breaking the record last set on Dec. 20, when 4,606 cases were reported. The county averaged about 3,500 new coronavirus cases a day over the past week.
Orange County on Saturday also posted its highest tally of COVID-19 deaths reported in a single day, with 63 new deaths, breaking the record last set on Sept. 29, when 33 deaths reported that day. The county averaged 12 deaths a day over the past week.
In Los Angeles County, COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to 6,815 on Christmas, more than triple the figure from Thanksgiving.
A patient rests in a hallway of Providence Saint Mary Medical Center on Dec. 22. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
ICUs across Los Angeles County are effectively full, and on Christmas, 1,368 people with COVID-19 were in the ICU, nearly triple the comparable figure from Thanksgiving.
The rate of increase in hospitalizations has slowed recently. In mid-December, COVID-19 hospitalizations statewide were increasing at nearly 5% a day; on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, hospitalizations rose by less than half a percent each day.
But stable hospitalization numbers at a time when the ICU system across much of the state is bursting at the seams may mean little if gatherings that took place on Christmas result in a huge surge of hospitalizations and deaths in the coming weeks.
A doctor at a public hospital in L.A. County said that physicians from wide-ranging departments are being recruited to help out with an anticipated uptick in COVID-19 patients.
Already, staff have been asked to postpone any vacations they may have had planned.
“It’s getting worse, and we haven’t even hit the Christmas or New Years surge yet,” one doctor at an L.A County hospital said. “I feel like the number of people that are going to die because the hospital system is beyond overwhelmed will shoot up.”
The quality of care for COVID-19 patients and others who need hospitalization for another illness or trauma is going to decline if hospitals become more overloaded, said UCLA’s Kim-Farley.
UCLA epidemiology department chair Karin Michels said she understands that people are feeling isolated and deprived of social contact. But it’s important for people to limit contact with those they don’t live with and not give up on precautions, she said.
“For many of us, it will be one of the most significant things in our lifetime....it’ll be sometime until we’re through this, but we need to get through it together,” she said.
Dr. Bipinchandra Bhagat checks on patients Dec. 22 in Apple Valley, Calif. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
People tend to feel safer indoors and also have a false sense of security when they are around their family members, said Ali Mokdad, an epidemiologist at the University of Washington.
“These are your loved ones ... You’re more likely to take off your mask and let down your guard,” he said.
Celebrations that bring together multiple generations may be particularly dangerous, with younger people who are more likely to be asymptomatic potentially exposing older, more vulnerable family members, he added.
Mokdad said that his model, run out of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, shows that most of the state’s surge is being led by indoor gatherings.
His data suggests that California’s cases will peak in mid-January.
Before Gov. Gavin Newsom put in place the stay-at-home order earlier this month, the model predicted a peak in February and there “would’ve been way more infections,” he said.
California has issued a travel advisory for nonessential travelers, including returning California residents, asking them to quarantine themselves for 10 days upon arrival in the state.
San Francisco and Santa Clara County have issued mandatory orders requiring travelers to quarantine upon their arrival from places outside the Bay Area — 10 days for San Francisco, 14 days for Santa Clara.
Health officials urged those who traveled over the holidays to quarantine themselves for 10 days to see if they develop signs of illness.
“It’s a really big disaster if people come back and then just go straight back to work,” said L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said on Thursday.
Ferrer also said county inspectors will be scrutinizing malls over the post-Christmas weekend on whether malls are getting too crowded, increasing the risk for virus transmission.
Under the state’s regional stay-at-home orders, shopping malls are supposed to be capped at 20% of capacity, but it’s clear that those limits are not being followed.
“We’re going to take a hard look this weekend at the shopping malls because the pictures we’ve been seeing are … another little mini disaster,” Ferrer said Thursday. “The occupancy is supposed to be down to 20%. But when you look around, they look way more crowded than 20%. And that just means a complete breakdown of what we are requiring.”
The regional stay-at-home order for Southern California, which went into effect just before midnight Dec. 7, will last until Tuesday, although state officials have already signaled it is likely to be extended.
If officials do decide they need to take a stronger approach to the existing stay-at-home order, it could either be imposed by the state for the entire region, or by an individual county.
L.A. County chief medical officer Dr. Jeffrey Gunzenhauser said the overwhelming number of people coming down with COVID-19 in recent weeks has exceeded even the health department’s expectations.
The highest number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in L.A. County during the summer surge was around 2,200.
Now it’s more than 6,800.
“We were planning to handle a lot, but we just didn’t see it going this far,” Gunzenhauser said. “It’s heart-wrenching.”