State reports 1,309 new covid cases, ventilator use tops 100 for 1st time since February

Arkansas National Guard Cpl. Katelynn Smith draws up a dose of the  Janssen covid-19 vaccine during the vaccine clinic on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, at Shorter College in North Little Rock. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Thomas Metthe)
Arkansas National Guard Cpl. Katelynn Smith draws up a dose of the Janssen covid-19 vaccine during the vaccine clinic on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, at Shorter College in North Little Rock. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Thomas Metthe)

A surge in coronavirus infections in Arkansas appeared to be continuing on Wednesday as the state's count of cases rose by more than 1,300 and the number of virus patients on ventilators topped 100 for the first time since February.

The number of people hospitalized in the state with covid-19 rose by 41, to 647, its highest level since Feb. 14. It was the ninth day in a row the number had risen by double digits.

The state's death toll from the virus, as tracked by the Department of Health, rose by seven, to 5,977.

"We have seen an increase in hospitalizations for the 15th day in a row, and active cases are up by 70% compared to last week," Gov. Asa Hutchinson said in a tweet.

"Our vaccinations have improved since last Wednesday, but it’s critical that number continues to climb to protect our state."

Except for a spike of 1,476 cases a day earlier, the 1,309 cases that were added to the state's count on Wednesday was the largest increase in a single day since February.

It was more than 300 cases bigger than the increase the previous Wednesday.

The average number of cases added to the state's count each day over a rolling seven-day period rose to 1,023 - topping 1,000 for the first time since the week ending Feb. 11.

With new cases outpacing recoveries, the number of cases that were considered active rose by 670, to 8,804, its highest level since Feb. 16.

The number of virus patients who were on ventilators rose by five, to 103, its highest level since Feb. 25.

The number who were in intensive care rose by the same number, to 145, its highest level since Feb. 16.

For the second day in a row, data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control showed Arkansas as the state with the largest number of new cases per 100,000 residents over a rolling seven-day period.

The 6,854 cases that were added to Arkansas' count during the week ending Tuesday translated to a rate of 227.1 per 100,000 residents.

Missouri had the next highest rate, 183.8 per 100,000 residents, followed by Florida, with 168.8 per 100,000 residents.

Even without adjusting for population, Arkansas' number of new cases during the week was the fourth highest in the country, behind only Texas, California and Missouri.

Arkansas' 44 covid-19 deaths reported during the week tranlsated to a rate of 1.5 per 100,000 residents. That was the second-highest rate in the country behind Wyoming's 1.6 deaths per 100,000 residents.

Meanwhile, Arkansas Health Department figures showed a continued uptick in the state's vaccinations.

At 6,022, the increase in vaccine doses that providers reported having administered, including second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, was larger by more than 700 than the increase the previous Wednesday.

The average number of doses administered each day over a rolling seven-day period rose to 4,889. That was up from a low of 3,855 the week ending July 9 but still well below the state's peak of more than 23,000 a day in early April.

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