1,902 new Florida coronavirus cases reported Friday; second straight day of record jump

TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) -- The Florida Department of Health says the number of known cases of COVID-19 in the state rose by 1,902 since yesterday morning as the virus spreads and as more people are tested across the state. The total number of cases in Florida is now 70,971.

The number of deaths has reached 2,877, an increase of 29 since Thursday's update. Locally, Hillsborough reported two, while Pinellas and Polk each reported one new death.

Of the 70,971 cases, 69,341 are Florida residents while 1,630 are non-Florida residents currently in the state.

Bay Area COVID-19 cases by the numbers:

Hillsborough: 3,295

Pinellas: 1,941

Sarasota: 724

Manatee: 1,309

Sumter: 266

Polk: 1,373

Citrus: 135

Hernando: 132

Pasco: 484

Highlands: 169

DeSoto: 329

Hardee: 177

The state is not reporting a total number of "recovered" coronavirus patients or those currently hospitalized. As of Friday, 11,706 people had been hospitalized for treatment at some point.

A total of 1,336,895 people have been tested in the state as of Friday -- about 6.2% of the state's population -- according to the Florida Department of Health.

Friday's total new cases represents the largest single-day increase in new cases since the beginning of the pandemic, eclipsing Thursday's record, and the 10th day in a row with new cases near or over 1,000 per day. Experts say that is partly due to more tests being given, but also a result of reopening the state. The rate of positive tests has also increased slightly during that time period.

Prior to this spike, the state had averaged just over 700 new cases per day in the last 30 days. That’s a level that the health care system can handle, according to Gov. Ron DeSantis. And while the number of new cases has trended up over the last few weeks, the number of deaths has appeared to trend down, though delays in data reporting make interpreting trends from that statistic less reliable.

As Florida continues taking steps to ease restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts say new cases and more deaths are expected.

Editor's note: The number of new cases and deaths reported each day does not necessarily reflect the day that the case was confirmed. The state says some private testing labs dump large batches of test results which include cases from previous days. Stats for today and previous days will likely change in the future as the state reviews more cases and updates retroactive data.

The state's number of deaths represents permanent Florida residents who have died from COVID-19. The number of non-Florida residents who have died from the coronavirus while in the state is not reported.