Los Angeles County reports record daily count of COVID-19 deaths

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County, the most populous county in the United States, reported on Thursday record daily count of COVID-19 deaths for the second day in a row amid worsening pandemic.

The county's Department of Public Health confirmed 148 additional deaths in a daily release, shattering the previous record of 145 set on Wednesday. There have been 9,299 COVID-19 deaths in the county since the start of the pandemic early this year.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health also confirmed 13,678 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, pushing its cumulative caseload to 677,299.

There are 6,499 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized in the county, with 20 percent in intensive care units.

Over the last week, the number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased by more than 1,600, according to the department.

"A person now dies every 10 minutes in L.A. County from COVID-19 - and since many of these deaths are preventable, our collective focus should be on doing right to save lives," said Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer in the daily release.

"I hope we can each find the strength and courage to take responsibility for each other's well-being. Follow the public health directives. These are the only tools that will work right now," she noted.