State passes 5,000 deaths
Wisconsin likely to hit 500,000 cases in days
More than 5,000 people have died from COVID-19 in Wisconsin since the start of the pandemic.
The state crossed the milestone Wednesday, reporting the most recent 1,000 deaths in just the last 25 days.
It took about five months for 1,000 Wisconsin residents to die from COVID-19. By Halloween, the state had reached 2,000 deaths.
Three weeks later, on Nov. 21, Wisconsin hit 3,000 COVID-19 deaths. Another three weeks later, on Dec. 12, the state passed 4,000.
Experts at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation were nearly correct when they projected Wisconsin would pass 5,000 deaths from COVID-19 just before the end of the year.
The institute now projects more than 1,800 people could die from COVID-19 in Wisconsin in the next month, and that the state could see a total death toll of more than 7,700 by April 1.
Meanwhile, total COVID-19 cases are nearing 500,000 in the state. Wisconsin was just over 5,000 cases away on Wednesday.
New cases reported: 3,406
New deaths reported: 60 Number hospitalized: 1,128 (intensive care: 243); down 374 patients from one month ago
Seven-day average of daily cases: 2,493 (down 1,432 cases from one month ago)
Seven-day average of daily deaths: 32 (down 27 from one month ago)
The average positivity rate — firsttime positive tests over the last seven days — was 32% Wednesday.
Total cases since the start of pandemic: 494,747 (27,843 active cases)
Total deaths: 5,039
Milwaukee starting its vaccination rollout
The City of Milwaukee received its first 100 doses of COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, and is scheduled to get 800 more next week.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said that of the 100 Pfizer vaccine doses arriving Wednesday, 50 would be used to inoculate Milwaukee Health Department staffers and 50 would go to the Milwaukee Fire Department.
The doses for the fire department will be used for emergency medical technicians, or EMTs. The doses for the health department will go to frontline workers, including those who plan to give COVID-19 shots next week.
“We can begin vaccinating those who will do more vaccinating on Monday,” Barrett said.
The city will start giving vaccine shots about 10 a.m. Thursday, said Marlaina Jackson, Milwaukee’s interim health commissioner.
Barrett said the city was able to accelerate the arrival of the first doses with the help of Gov. Tony Evers and the state
Department of Health Services.
The city expects to receive another 800 doses next week in staggered shipments.
He said the staggered shipments will allow the city to quickly administer doses of the vaccine without needing to store it in the deep-freeze temperatures required for the Pfizer vaccine.
The doses sent to Milwaukee will be used for EMTs as well as frontline health workers, including nurses, clinical staff and those in the lab handling virus samples.
We want to remember the lives of those who died from COVID-19. Email us at jsmetro@jrn.com with the subject line “COVID-19 remembrance” if you’d like to share a loved one’s story with the Journal Sentinel.