Michigan's coronavirus death toll nears 2,000, with more than 27,000 positive cases

Michigan’s coronavirus death toll rose by 153 on Wednesday, bringing the total to nearly 2,000.

The state now has more more than 27,000 infections, up 1,366 over the past 24 hours.

Michigan ranks third in the number of positive cases and deaths nationwide, behind New York and New Jersey.

In Wayne County, where the coronavirus has hit the hardest, there were 66 new deaths for a total of 886. Of those, 45 were in Detroit. The county now has more than 12,000 positive cases.

Making up 18% of the state’s population, Wayne County has nearly half of the deaths and confirmed infections.

All but seven of the state’s 83 counties have confirmed COVID-19 cases.

In Oakland County, there are 5,576 positive cases and 392 deaths. The county began deploying mobile morgues as hospitals run out of space to store bodies.

Macomb County has 3,792 confirmed infections and 330 deaths. In Washtenaw County there are 798 positive cases and 24 deaths.

Statewide, 40% of the people who have died were Black, 40% were white, and 15% are unknown. Black people make up 33% of positive cases. Another third of the cases are unknown, and white people represent 28% of the confirmed infections.

Globally, there are more than 2 million coronavirus cases in 184 countries, and nearly 133,000 deaths as of Wednesday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University & Medicine.

The U.S. has more positive cases than any country in the world, with nearly 615,000 confirmed infections and more than 27,000 deaths.

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