KY COVID-19 Update: Thursday, Sept. 24

DEM Blogger

September 24, 2020

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 24, 2020) – Gov. Andy Beshear on Thursday updated Kentuckians on the state’s continuing efforts to fight the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

“Let’s be thinking about what we can do for others at all times during this virus. This is a time that takes more compassion than any in my lifetime, and that’s with every challenge we face right now,” said Gov. Beshear. “Let’s remember that we’ve got to listen to each other and we’ve got to help each other.”

The Governor also highlighted the news that two Louisville Metro Police Department officers shot last night during protests in Louisville are expected to recover. The Governor noted that he was able to speak directly with one officer and a family member of the other.

“We know that the answer to violence is never violence and we are thinking about those two officers and their families,” said Gov. Beshear last night. “Hopefully we can find ways not just to listen to each other, but to hear. Stay safe. We care about each and every one of you.”

Today, the Governor reiterated: “I want to condemn this act of violence in the most stark terms. It is absolutely wrong. We want to make sure that any type of activity or demonstrations remain nonviolent and peaceful. Just one person can mar something that otherwise is done the right way.”

Case Information
As of 4 p.m. Sept. 24, Gov. Beshear said there were at least 64,158 coronavirus cases in Kentucky, 745 of which were newly reported Thursday. One hundred and seven of the newly reported cases were from children ages 18 and younger, 20 of which were children ages 5 and under. The youngest was just 6 days old.

“Again, it seems like we are seeing a larger and larger and larger portion of positive cases being our young people,” said Gov. Beshear.

Unfortunately, Gov. Beshear reported 13 new deaths Thursday, raising the total to 1,137 Kentuckians lost to the virus.

The deaths reported Thursday include a 97-year-old woman from Bell County; an 86-year-old woman from Christian County; a 96-year-old woman from Fayette County; two women, ages 90 and 97, from Jefferson County; an 82-year-old man from Perry County; and four women, ages 62, 84, 89 and 94, and three men, ages 69, 87 and 88, from Warren County.

“The toughest part of today’s report – 13 new deaths. These are 13 individuals whose families will be mourning them. It’s a hard number for any given day; 13 individuals. And not on here is a friend of mine from Northern Kentucky who I just learned about an hour and a half ago had passed away after a multimonth battle with COVID-19,” said Gov. Beshear. “Let’s remember this virus is very, very real and it’s still out there. So let’s make sure that we light our homes up green, we ring those bells at 10 a.m. and that we try to reach out to these families who may be needing help.”

As of Thursday, there have been at least 1,301,407 coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky. The positivity rate was 4.57%, and at least 11,570 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.

For additional information, including up-to-date lists of positive cases and deaths, as well as breakdowns of coronavirus infections by county, race and ethnicity, click here. To see all recent daily reports, click here.

Information about COVID-19 and schools is also being made available. To view the reports, click here for K-12 and here for colleges and universities.

More Information
Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at governor.ky.gov, kycovid19.ky.gov and the Governor’s official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Kentuckians can also access translated COVID-19 information and summaries of the Governor’s news conferences at teamkentuckytranslations.com.