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BELLEFONTE --A single-day record of 47 new COVID-19 cases in Centre County was reported by the Pennsylvania Department of Health on Wednesday.
The 47 cases mark the highest single-day increase in Centre County since the start of the pandemic. The previous single-day high was 20, which was reported this past Saturday, Aug. 29. Of Wednesday's 47 new cases, nearly all were in the State College and University Park (Penn State University) zip codes.
Since the first Centre County case cropped up on March 20, Centre County has reported 538 cases. In just the past two weeks, there have been 132 cases of COVID-19 reported in the county.
Penn State reported on Tuesday that between Friday and Sunday, 32 students at University Park tested positive out of 1,178 symptomatic and asymptomatic tests.
Penn State has not announced any plans to switch to virtual learning. The State College Area School District has addressed the numbers through correspondence with families in the district and told families to prepare for a move to online learning. The SCASD board was scheduled to meet last night.
Other school districts in Centre County -- Bald Eagle Area, Bellefonte, Penns Valley and Philipsburg-Osceola -- did not announce changes to their respective schedules on Tuesday.
According to data from the DOH, Centre County has three people who currently have COVID-19 and are hospitalized. Across the Commonwealth, there are 550 COVID-19 patients. Of those, 67 require the use of a ventilator. In Pennsylvania, a total of 816 positive cases were reported by the DOH on Wednesday. Since the DOH began keeping count, there are 135,611 total cases.
Throughout the state, there were 12,116 new negative tests. A total of 1,552,085 Pennsylvania residents have tested negative for COVID-19. Over the past seven days, 164,110 COVID-19 tests have been administered in Pennsylvania with 4,760 positive cases.
An estimated 82 percent of COVID-19 patients in the state -- about 111,201 -- have recovered, according to a DOH calculation.
The DOH reported 21 new COVID-19 deaths. The deadly virus has now taken the lives of 7,712 Pennsylvanians.
In Clinton County, six new cases were added by the DOH on Wednesday. Three cases were added at Lock Haven University as it began two weeks of online instruction. LHU has administered 891 tests. A total of 848 of those have been negative. During the two weeks of online instruction, students have the option of returning home or remaining in their residence halls.
The Keystone Central School District began the second day of its "soft opening" on Wednesday. The first day of school for all students is scheduled for today.