FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ Two people in Broward County have tested positive for the new coronavirus, while two new presumptive positive cases were reported in Lee and Charlotte counties on the state's west coast, according to the Florida Department of Health.
The cases await independent confirmation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The health department also announced that two Floridians with COVID-19 have died: a previously announced patient in Santa Rosa County who had taken an international trip and a person in their 70s from Lee County who tested positive for the virus following an international trip.
As of Saturday afternoon, Florida has a total of 14 cases of the virus: Eight residents have tested positive, one non-Florida resident is included, and five Floridians have tested positive and are isolated out-of-state. An additional 88 test results are pending.
In the United States, there are more than 300 confirmed cases, at least 17 deaths, and 28 states reporting cases. The states reporting cases: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.
Worldwide, there are more than 102,000 confirmed cases in 96 countries and territories, with about 3,500 deaths.
Broward Mayor Dale Holness and Broward Public Health Department Director Dr. Paula Thaqi, at a Saturday morning news conference, continued to tell residents to wash their hands and take other steps to reduce their risk of contracting the illness.
But they would not give specific details about two presumptive cases in Broward County, whether there were other cases, about how many testing kits might be available, or how long it would take to get test results back.
Florida health officials are reminding anyone with symptoms _ a temperature greater than 100.4, cough and shortness of breath _ to call the 24-hour COVID-19 Call Center at 1-866-779-6121. If you want to call your local branch of the state health department, you can locate it by using the state website.
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Saturday directed the Florida Division of Emergency Management to "activate to Level II" to coordinate the state's response to the new coronavirus and provide additional backup to the state and county branches of the Department of Health. The Level 2 designation in the state's three-tiered emergency response plan is one step above a monitoring status, but a step below a full-scale response where all state state personnel are required to act.
Meanwhile, a memo is circulating in the NBA about teams playing without fans in the arena. According to the memo, teams have been asked to identify only those who are essential to conducting games, with the possibility of fever checks for those who would remain part of the process.
Teams officials have been instructed not to comment on the issue.
