Boston Mayor Marty Walsh warned against a second coronavirus outbreak Tuesday, saying the U.S. "is in the worst place it's ever been in dealing with the pandemic."
"The California governor yesterday had to shut down indoor businesses for the second time," Walsh said during his regular coronavirus update. "It's a tough blow to that state's economy, but no doubt a necessary and important step. There's even worse situations we're seeing coming out of hospitals in Florida and Texas and Arizona and other places in the country, quite honestly."
The U.S. is now grappling with the worst coronavirus outbreak in the world, especially in the South and West. Deaths rates have also been rising, though they are still well below the heights hit in April, according to a recent Associated Press analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University.
"All of this closing down, all of this infection rate is devastating," Walsh said. "Here in Boston and Massachusetts, we need to do everything we can to avoid going down that same path that many of these states and other cities in America are going down."
He urged residents to continue to take the necessary precautions to prevent having to roll back the reopening of the city's economy.
"We've worked ourselves into a strong position to control our own destiny here in Boston," Walsh said. "But as soon as we stop doing what works and taking precautions, we are at risk of moving backward. These first weeks of Phase 3 are critical. Every time you leave the house, I ask you to think about what you're doing to prevent the spread of this virus."
U.S. & World
Massachusetts reported just five confirmed COVID-19-related deaths Monday, bringing the total number of confirmed and probable deaths since the beginning of the pandemic to 8,330.
There were 230 newly confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, reported Monday — bringing the total number of confirmed and probable cases to more than 111,800 in Massachusetts since the start of the pandemic.
Walsh said Boston reported 50 new cases over the weekend, bringing the city's total to 13,723. He said the city has been averaging about 16 new cases a day over the past week.
