ORLANDO, Fla. – On a rainy Memorial Day in Florida, state health officials reported 879 new cases of the novel coronavirus following a holiday weekend that brought massive gatherings to Sunshine State beaches despite an ongoing global pandemic.
According to the Florida Department of Health COVID-19 dashboard, as of Monday 51,746 people have tested positive for the respiratory illness since March 1, although health officials believe the virus was in the U.S.
and Florida as early as February. Florida reported 19 new deaths Monday, bringing the state death toll to 2,252 as nationwide deaths near 100,000.
Florida coronavirus deaths face significant delays in reporting, according to the DOH, up to two weeks and could be more than the overall