LA County’s Public Health Director Breaks Down Over Surging COVID Death Toll

Dr. Barbara Ferrer Discusses Covid. (Credit: YouTube)

The latest spike in COVID-related deaths in Los Angeles County caused public health director, Dr. Barbara Ferrer, to get emotional during Wednesday’s televised briefing.

The county reported an additional 75 deaths, pushing the total number of virus-related lives lost past 8,000. Ferrer said the county’s death rate increased 258 percent in the last month, and she warned that the numbers are only going to get worse after people traveled and gathered in groups for the Thanksgiving holiday.

“As cases have continued to increase the past few weeks, we will bear witness to a significant rise in the number of people who are dying. While this trendline provides a frightening visual of our reality, the more terrible truth is that over eight thousand people,” Ferrer said, then paused as she broke down in tears. “I’m sorry. Over eight thousand people who were beloved members of their families are not coming back, and their deaths are an incalculable loss to their friends and their family, as well as our community.”

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Among the lives lost, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday that the first child death related to the virus occurred this week. The child, whose age was not released, was treated at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and died after experiencing coronavirus-linked multisystem inflammatory syndrome, known as MIS-C.

Los Angeles County is part of the entire Southern California region that is currently under strict stay-at-home orders. California’s Central Valley is also under the same restrictions.

Watch a video of the briefing below: