Georgia reports over 10,000 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend

ATLANTA — Georgia reported 10,006 new cases of COVID-19 over the weekend as the highly-contagious delta variant surges across the state.

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Thirty more people have died, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.

We’re working to learn how the state is preparing for the growing surge, for Channel 2 Action News starting at 4 p.m.

The 7-day moving average of new cases is nearly 4,000 per day. The last time case rates were so high was in early February.

The numbers include 2,470 cases were reported Monday, 3,138 on Sunday and 4,398 on Saturday.

The positivity rate on Aug. 9 was 16.4%.

There are currently 3,486 COVID-19 patients in Georgia hospitals. At least 208 more people were admitted over the weekend.

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Georgia hospitals are currently seeing severe overcrowding, and some are even having to turn patients away. Most metro Atlanta hospitals were on ER diversions on Monday, meaning they were having to reroute ambulances to other, less busy hospitals.

[RELATED: Georgia hospitals nearing capacity as COVID-19 cases rise. Here’s how to check yours]

Nearly 85% of ICU beds in Georgia are in use and nearly 82% of emergency room beds are also occupied. At least 1,267 people are on ventilators across the state, which is over 36% of the state’s capacity.

The case surge comes as children across metro Atlanta return to school. Of the 10,000 cases recorded this weekend, 2,134 of them were reported in children under age 17.

Only 41% of Georgians are fully vaccinated.

Nearly 19,000 people in Georgia have died of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

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