The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health today confirmed 128 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection, bring the total to 662. Of those, 31 were in West Hollywood, a 35% increase over the 23 counted on Monday.
So far there have been seven COVID-19-related deaths in Los Angeles County, an increase of three over the count on Monday. “One individual was a youth under the age of 18, and two other individuals were between 50-70 years old,” said the Health Department in a press release. “One of the individuals between 50-70 years old had underlying health conditions and resided in West Adams, the other is from a location that is still under investigation. The individual under the age of 18 resided in Lancaster. “
West Hollywood and Brentwood, which also has 31 infections as of today, have the largest number that have been confirmed in cities and neighborhoods of Los Angeles County. West Hollywood has one COVID-19 infected resident for each of its 1,189 residents.
It is not clear as yet why West Hollywood has such a high number of infections. One factor might be its density, which makes it harder for residents, particularly those of apartment and condo buildings, to do the “social distancing” recommended to keep people away from those who may be infected but not know it. Another issue may be the continued propensity of gay men – who make up 33% of the city’s population — to engage in sexual encounters with strangers, which is evident in postings of WeHo residents on Grindr, Scruff, BBRTS and other gay sex apps.
Regarding nearby cities and neighborhoods, there was no increase reported today in the 12 infections in Beverly Hills on Monday. Culver City’s infections increased from five to seven. Infections in Hollywood grew from 14 confirmed on Monday to 19 today. The Melrose neighborhood had a large increase, with the 19 infections reported on Monday growing to 26 today.
Emergency declarations by the governor of California, the county Health Department and the West Hollywood City Council have required the closure of bars and nightclubs, gyms, movie theatres and bowling alleys as well as other businesses deemed non-essential. Grocery stores and supermarkets, pharmacies, and medical cannabis shops are among those deemed to be essential and allowed to remain open. Restaurants can be open only to prepare food for pickup and delivery.
Health officials continue to emphasize the importance of “social distancing,” which means staying home, avoiding crowds and staying at least six feet away from others whenever possible. Local grocery stores are beginning to enforce that, with Trade Joe’s on Santa Monica Boulevard at Westmount requiring that those waiting on line to get in stand far apart. The Target store at the West Hollywood Gateway has put strips of red type on the floor near cash registers to notify shoppers that they have to maintain a six-foot distance from one another while waiting in line to pay.
People are being asked to practice social distancing because when someone with COVID-19 coughs or sneezes the small droplets from their nose or mouth can travel three to six feet. People can get infected if they breathe in these droplets, or the droplets land on their eyes, nose, or mouth. Although people who are sick with COVID-19 are the most infectious, it is possible that some people may spread the virus before they start to feel unwell.
It is also possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching his or her own mouth, nose, or eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.
The City of West Hollywood on March 16 proclaimed a local emergency because of the COVID-19 epidemic and since then has compiled a list of resources for workers, renters, older adults and others that can be accessed on its website.
Cities and neighborhoods in Los Angeles County with confirmed COVID-19 infections as noon Tuesday are as follows:
- Agoura Hills 3
- Alhambra 5
- Altadena 5
- Arcadia 4
- Athens 1
- Baldwin Hills 3
- Bellflower 3
- Beverly Hills 12
- Beverlywood 7
- Boyle Heights 5
- Brentwood 31
- Burbank 2
- Calabasas 4
- Canoga Park 2
- Canyon Country 1
- Carson 8
- Castaic 2
- Century City 6
- Century Palms/Cove 1
- Cerritos 2
- Claremont 1
- Cloverdale/Cochran 2
- Compton 1
- Covina 3
- Crestview 7
- Culver City 7
- Del Rey 3
- Diamond Bar 2
- Downey 1
- Downtown 3
- Duarte 1
- Eagle Rock 2
- East Hollywood 1
- East Los Angeles 3
- Echo Park 2
- El Segundo 2
- Encino 12
- Exposition Park 1
- Florence 1
- Gardena 1
- Glendale 10
- Glendora 1
- Granada Hills 5
- Hancock Park 7
- Harbor Gateway 1
- Harvard Heights 1
- Hawthorne 6
- Highland Park 1
- Hollywood 19
- Hollywood Hills 8
- Hyde Park 1
- Inglewood 5
- Koreatown 5
- La Canada Flintridge 2
- La Mirada 3
- La Puente 1
- La Verne 2
- Lake Balboa 2
- Lakewood 3
- Lancaster 8
- Lawndale 2
- Lincoln Heights 1
- Lomita 9
- Long Beach 21
- Los Feliz 2
- Lynwood 2
- Manhattan Beach 11
- Mar Vista 6
- Melrose 26
- Miracle Mile 7
- Monterey Park 3
- Mt. Washington 1
- North Hollywood 10
- Northridge 2
- Norwalk 1
- Pacific Palisades 9
- Palmdale 2
- Palms 6
- Paramount 2
- Park La Brea 8
- Pasadena 6
- Pico 1
- Pico Rivera 1
- Playa Vista 4
- Porter Ranch 1
- Rancho Palos Verdes 3
- Redondo Beach 7
- Reseda 4
- San Dimas 1
- San Fernando 2
- San Gabriel 1
- San Pedro 2
- Santa Clarita 7
- Santa Monica 16
- Santa Monica Mountains 2
- Sherman Oaks 10
- Silverlake 5
- South El Monte 1
- South Gate 1
- South Park 1
- South Pasadena 3
- South Whittier 2
- Stevenson Ranch 2
- Studio City 7
- Sun Valley 2
- Sunland 1
- Sylmar 1
- Tarzana 9
- Temple 1
- Torrance 5
- Tujunga 1
- University Park 1
- Valley Glen 9
- Van Nuys 4
- Venice 8
- Vermont Knolls 1
- Vermont Vista 3
- Vernon Central 1
- Walnut 1
- West Adams 3
- West Covina 1
- West Hills 4
- West Hollywood 31
- West Los Angeles 4
- West Vernon 4
- Westchester 3
- Westlake 1
- Westwood 6
- Whittier 3
- Wholesale District 1
- Willowbrook 1
- Wilmington 4
- Wilshire Center 1
- Winnetka 2
- Woodland Hills 8
- Under Investigation 62
How about we stop slut shaming. The fact is that WeHo has a huge tourism industry. Interacting with a large number of people from diverse locations makes the odds of infection very high. Combine that with better access to testing due to the increased risk & greater access to healthcare and the high rate of confirmed cases makes a lot more sense.
…but what I want to know is where have all of these confirmed cases been in the last 14 days? I’d like to know so I can determine whether I or my family have been to these places at/around the same time and could have been exposed should we have touched surfaces, etc.
The numbers are going to continue to go up. Someone I know just received an official diagnosis today and had been dancing on tables at Flaming Saddles during brunch the weekend before the lockdown. This person is on the mend but who knows how many people were exposed to this virus because of a selfish and immature choice. People need to listen and stay home as much as possible!
I am curious, how many of the 31 cases are gay men? Wouldn’t it be prudent to have this information before making assumptions that it is related to gay hookup sites? While I am concerned about the spread of infection among gays (and straights!) hooking up on apps, I find this particular remark homophobic and harmful. Let’s do better.
Lol, I’m with ya. I think citing the hookup apps were an attempt to actually to cover the folly of the previous statement that was blatantly derogatory and stigmatic. You’re right, the author can do better.
Agreed. The author continues to report on gay men spreading the virus through hookup apps (also in an article the other day) and I find it most likely inaccurate. How do you explain the 31 confirmed cases in Brentwood? Closeted married men on Grindr? This is brining back memories and accusations such as the early days of the AIDS epidemic. Please report responsibly – the author is doing damage to the gay Community and unless there are facts and research to support this, it needs to stop. THIS is Fake News!
Appears there is a question on how the teenager died.https://www.stltoday.com/news/national/govt-and-politics/los-angeles-county-backtracks-on-teen-s-possible-virus-death/article_2781dd82-485e-517c-9722-57fe95db4e0f.html