What to Know
- Florida's coronavirus-related death toll reached 668 Thursday, 54 more than were reported Wednesday night
- Of the 668 deaths reported, 183 were in Miami-Dade County, while 101 were reported in Broward County
- More than 3,400 people have been hospitalized in the state to date
Florida had more than 23,300 confirmed coronavirus infections Thursday, with more than 660 COVID-19 related deaths reported.
Total cases in the state reached 23,340, with more than 3,400 people hospitalized in the state to date, according to figures released by the Florida Department of Health.
Of the 668 deaths reported, 183 were in Miami-Dade County, while 101 were reported in Broward County. Another 112 deaths were reported in Palm Beach County.
CORONAVIRUS LATEST
Miami-Dade led the state with 8,326 confirmed COVID-19 cases, about 36 percent of the state's total, followed by Broward with 3,466. Palm Beach County had 1,867 cases, and Monroe had 66.
The City of Miami continues to be the hardest hit in the state, with 5,018 cases. Hialeah on Wednesday moved into second in the state and had 1,058 cases Thursday, followed by Hollywood with 1,001.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that the state was opening two walk-through coronavirus testing sites, both in Broward. The sites were set to open Saturday at Mitchell Moore park in Pompano Beach and at the Urban League in Fort Lauderdale.
On Wednesday, DeSantis announced that he was forming a task force to look at ways to restart the state's economy. He said he plans to announce members by the end of the week.
“What I want to do is tap into people in elected office, people in business, people involved in education, all kinds of things, and get the best ideas about what’s the most prudent way to move forward," DeSantis said.
DeSantis also announced Wednesday that he was tapping Management Services Secretary Jonathan Satter to take over the Department of Economic Opportunity's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
DeSantis said he was disappointed by the state's website and phone system for receiving claims after an initial spike last month. Hundreds of thousands of Floridians who sought jobless aid encountered an online portal that crashed and phone systems that kept them on hold for hours.
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Labor said more than 180,000 workers in Florida filed claims with the state's unemployment system last week, raising the state’s total seeking jobless benefits to over a half million people since many parts of the Sunshine State went under lockdown last month.
