In an Encouraging Sign, Suffolk Hospitalizations Caused by the Virus Drop

On Easter Sunday, County Executive Steve Bellone (D) shared more encouraging signs about the battle against the coronavirus.

The number of hospitalizations fell over the last 24 hours, for the first time since the start of the pandemic on Long Island. The number of hospitalizations decreased by 44, to 1,658.

“This is the number that tells me where we are headed,” Bellone said on his daily call with reporters.

Bellone cautioned that it’s unclear whether this individual statistic was a statistical anomaly or part of a trend.

“In the context of where we’ve been and the trajectory, there’s a bit of light in the darkness,” Bellone said. “There’s a real sense of hope about where we are going and what is happening.”

While the number of overall hospitalizations declined, the number of residents in beds in the intensive care unit increased by seven to 548.

“We’re seeing that staying relatively in that flat level,” Bellone said. “We’ll see where that goes over the next few days.”

In the last 24 hours, hospitals in Suffolk County have discharged 160 patients, which is also a positive figure Bellone shared.

The number of people who have tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19 has increased to 20,934.

The new testing sites in hotspot communities including Huntington Station, Brentwood and Riverhead will be closed tomorrow because of expected heavy winds and rain.

“High winds make it impossible to do this kind of testing,” Bellone said. People who had an appointment would be able to reschedule them.

The virus continues to claim the lives of residents in the county. The number of people who have died from complications related to the coronavirus increased by 60, bringing the total to 518. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this morning the death tole in New York has gone to 9,385.

The county executive extended his condolences to the families who have lost loved ones to the pandemic.

“I never imagined being in the position of reporting the numbers on a daily basis of people who have died in our county from anything like this,” Bellone said. “It drives home the point of why we’re doing all of this.”

Bellone urged people to continue to maintain social distancing and to work from home. While he couldn’t indicate when the county might open up again, he suggested that the economic decision-making process would likely involve regional discussions and coordination.

“We are one region, and when we talk about the economy, that’s important,” Bellone said. “It’s too early to tell the direction of the data.”

Bellone said he would continue to look at hospitalizations, as the hospitals are “strained beyond anything we have ever seen.”

Bellone visited the field hospital that construction workers were building this morning at Stony Brook University and which is scheduled for completion by next Saturday.

“It is our hope that our hospital never sees a single patient,” Bellone said. “If that is the case, it means that everything we have been doing, the sacrifices, the Easter that is different for all of us today who celebrate, that it is working and is saving people’s lives.”