KTLA

L.A. County COVID-19 deaths surpass 25,000

Reginstered nurse Courtney Herron works in the COVID-19 unit inside Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance on July 30.(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles County reported 35 additional COVID-19 deaths Thursday, pushing the region past another grim pandemic milestone: 25,000 total fatalities, officials said.

The single-day death toll is among the higher ones in recent weeks and represents the end of the devastating domino effect of the coronavirus — with increases in new infections triggering rises in hospitalizations and, eventually, fatalities.

As a result, even though there are some signs that the latest coronavirus surge may be starting to level out in L.A. County in terms of cases, the spike’s full effects won’t become clear for a few weeks.

“The virus continues to cause debilitating and dangerous illness, and the losses we suffer now are particularly sad because almost all of them are preventable with an extremely safe and widely available vaccine,” county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said during a briefing.

Read the full story on LATImes.com.