Pennsylvania deaths associated with coronavirus reach 2,418
HARRISBURG » State health officials are announcing 64 new deaths associated with the coronavirus in Pennsylvania, bringing the total in the commonwealth to 2,418.
Officials also announced Saturday that the number of positive cases had topped 48,300.
Most hospitalizations and deaths have occurred in patients 65 or older. Of the total deaths, 1,614 have occurred in residents from nursing or personal care facilities.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick. There is no data on how many people have recovered.
For most people, it causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up in a couple of weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are at higher risk of more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
STATE PARK, FORESTS REOPENING PLANS
State officials have announced plans to reopen some state park and forest facilities in Pennsylvania.
The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said Saturday that public golf courses at Caledonia and Evansburg state parks and Michaux State Forest were authorized to reopen as of Friday.
All nine marinas in state parks will be open to the public next Friday or on their usual opening date. At least one restroom in day use areas and in marinas at state parks and forests statewide will be open to the public as of next Friday.
On Friday, Gov. Tom Wolf lifted some pandemic restrictions on 24 largely rural counties in the northwest and northcentral regions of Pennsylvania, moving them from red to yellow in the state’s color-coded reopening plan. The most heavily populated areas, including Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, will remain locked down, Wolf said.
In counties in the yellow phase, state park and forest facilities including offices, campgrounds, and the Nature Inn at Bald Eagle will be open to the public on May 15, state officials said. Cabins in those areas won’t be open until June and campgrounds and cabins in all other state parks will remain closed.