California recorded 15,018 COVID-19 deaths and 781,694 total cases on Sunday, marking another dire milestone for the state roughly six weeks after it surpassed 10,000 COVID-19 deaths in early August.
California is situated behind Texas, New Jersey and New York when it comes to most COVID-19 deaths, which have reported 15,161, 16,067 and 33,934 deaths, respectively.
Within California, Los Angeles remains the county with the most COVID-19 deaths at over 6,000. According to data compiled from the L.A. Public Health Department, Glendale has had the most deaths, followed by El Monte.
In a briefing on Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom cautioned that the fall season — which officially begins on Tuesday — and the upcoming flu season posed a threat when it comes to COVID-19.
L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer also said in a statement on Sunday that precautionary measures are still “absolutely essential.”
“Given the reality that as many as 50% of those infected are able to transmit the virus to others may have no symptoms, taking universal precautions in every interaction with others who are not in your household, is absolutely essential,” Ferrer said. “We need to commit to the behaviors we know will reduce our infection rate and slow the spread of the virus: wearing face coverings, avoiding gatherings with people we don’t live with, washing our hands frequently, and keeping physical distance from others. “