New York coronavirus deaths soar past 960 as New Rochelle’s ‘Patient Zero’ goes home

The mammoth fight against coronavirus in New York intensified Sunday as the state grappled with over 59,000 cases and at least 965 deaths.

That’s an increase of 237 deaths in less than 24 hours.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for “all hands on deck” to help stop the virus. He extended his order for all non-essential New York workers to stay home until April 15.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks during a briefing on coronavirus in the Brady press briefing room at the White House, Saturday, March 14, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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Cuomo said all hospitals need to work together, especially because various parts of the state could reach peaks of cases at different times. And there’s a shortage of critical ventilators and hospital beds.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said his city is on track to run out of supplies next weekend.

“We have enough supplies to get to a week from today, with the exception of ventilators,” de Blasio said Sunday.

“We’re going to need at least several hundred more ventilators very quickly,” the mayor said. “We are going to need a reinforcement by Sunday, April 5, in all categories, especially ventilators but in other areas as well. And personnel is becoming more and more the issue.”

It’s not just New York on the brink of dire shortages. Some hospitals across the country expect to run out of beds within two weeks.

Nationwide, more than 130,000 people have been infected with coronavirus, and at least 2,298 have died.

New Rochelle’s ‘Patient Zero’ goes home

A bit of good news emerged Sunday when Cuomo said the attorney at the center of the New Rochelle outbreak has been discharged from a hospital and is now back home in the New York City suburb.

A U.S. National Guard soldier stops traffic as fellow troops distribute food to local residents at the WestCop community center on March 18, 2020 in New Rochelle, New York. The troops have been deployed to New Rochelle, which has been a hot spot for the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S.

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Cuomo has called the man “Patient Zero,” but the attorney’s family has identified him as Lawrence Garbuz.

Garbuz, who worked in Manhattan, tested positive for coronavirus March 2. It’s unclear how he contracted Covid-19.

Officials said more than 50 coronavirus cases could be linked to Garbuz, including his wife, son, daughter, a neighbor who drove him to the hospital, another friend, and that friend’s family.

730 NYPD officers have coronavirus

The New York Police Department is mourning the deaths of three members who died from coronavirus while the number of cases within force keep rising.

As of Sunday, 730 NYPD officers and 96 civilian employees have tested positive, a law enforcement official said.

This scanning electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2 (yellow)—also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus that causes COVID-19—isolated from a patient in the U.S., emerging from the surface of cells (blue/pink) cultured in the lab. Credit: NIAID-RML

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Of those 826 total employees infected, 29 are hospitalized, and one is in critical condition, the official said.

The NYPD advises members with underlying conditions who want special accommodations to seek permission to work from home, the official said. The department is advising pregnant staff members to do the same.

On Saturday, the department announced its first death of a detective due to coronavirus

Detective Cedric Dixon,a 23-year veteran, worked in the 32nd Precinct in Harlem, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said.

The detective was in his 40s and had underlying health conditions, multiple law enforcement officials said. Shea did not provide details on the officer’s health history.

People walk in Brooklyn while lower Manhattan looms in the background on March 28, 2020 in New York City, NY. Across the country schools, businesses and places of work have either been shut down or are restricting hours of operation as health officials try to slow the spread of COVID-19.

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On Friday, Giacomina Barr-Brown, a civilian worked in the 49th Precinct Roll Call Office, also died from coronavirus.

Barr-Brown was a seven-year veteran of the NYPD.

And on Thursday, Dennis C. Dickson, a custodian who worked at police headquarters, became the first member of the NYPD to lose his life to coronavirus.

The police chief lauded Dickson’s commitment to the department, noting the 14-year veteran “worked 17 days straight” during Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

“May we never forget the sacrifice of those workers who put themselves in harm’s way to keep you and your family safe,” Shea said.

CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia, Shimon Prokupecz, Sheena Jones, Devan Cole and Eric Levenson contributed to this report.