KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Wichita’s mayor tweeted Monday that hospitals in his city area nearing capacity with COVID-19 patients as the pandemic continues to spread.
Mayor Brandon Whipple said on Twitter he has spoken with hospital leadership who told him that if cases continue to increase at the same rate, they’ll reach capacity in two to three weeks.
Just got off the phone with the leadership at our #Wichita hospitals & admitted patients for covid19 are the highest ever. If these numbers continue at the same rate our hospitals will reach compacity in 2-3 weeks (sooner if we have a 4th of July bump).
— Dr. Brandon Whipple (@BWhippleKS) July 13, 2020
Please wear your mask.
According to the Sedgwick County Health Department, 54 people are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19 in the county. That’s more than double the number of patients hospitalized on June 29.
Data also shows the county down to eight ICU beds. One week ago, they had 25 available.
The news comes as new COVID-19 cases have nearly doubled in the county during the first 13 days of July. According to a 41 Action News data analysis, the county reported 1,260 cases on July 1.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment puts the county’s total at 2,422 as of 9 a.m. on Monday morning.
