Second virus wave emerging in US as infections top two million

HOUSTON (Texas) • A second wave of coronavirus cases is emerging in the United States, sparking concerns as new infections push the overall count past two million people in the country.

Texas on Wednesday reported 2,504 new cases, the highest one-day total since the pandemic emerged. A month into its reopening, Florida this week reported 8,553 new cases - the most in any seven-day period.

California's hospitalisations are at their highest since May 13, and have risen in nine of the past 10 days.

A fresh onslaught of the coronavirus is bringing challenges for residents and the economy in pockets across the US.

The localised surges have raised concerns among experts even as the nation's overall case count early this week rose just under 1 per cent, the smallest increase since March.

"There is a new wave coming in parts of the country," said Dr Eric Toner, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Centre for Health Security. "It is small and it is distant so far, but it is coming."

Though the outbreaks come weeks into state reopenings, it is not clear if they are linked to increased economic activity.

Health experts say it is too soon to tell if the massive protests against police brutality in the past two weeks have led to more infections.

In the state of Georgia, where hair salons, tattoo parlours and gyms have been operating for 11/2 months, case numbers have plateaued, flummoxing experts.

Puzzling differences show up even within states. In California, which imposed a stay-at-home order in late March, San Francisco saw zero cases for three consecutive days this week, while Los Angeles County reported well over half of the state's new cases.

The White House coronavirus task force has yet to see any relationship between reopening and increased cases of Covid-19, said Food and Drug Administration commissioner Stephen Hahn.

But in some states, rising numbers outpace increases in testing, raising concerns about whether the virus can be controlled. It will take a couple of weeks to know, Dr Toner said, but by then "it is going to be pretty late" to respond.

Since the pandemic swept the US early this year, more than 112,000 have died.

After a national shutdown that arrested the spread, rising illness had been expected as curbs loosened.

The trend has been observed across 22 states in recent weeks, though many increases are steady but slow.

In New York, the state hardest hit by Covid-19, Governor Andrew Cuomo only recently started reopening by region. New York City, the epicentre, started on the first of four phases of reopening on Monday.

"We know as a fact that reopening other states, we are seeing significant problems," Mr Cuomo said on Tuesday. "Just because you reopen does not mean you will have a spike, but if you are not smart, you can have a spike."

Experts see evidence of a second wave building in Arizona, Texas, Florida and California.

Dr Daniel Lucey, a fellow at the Infectious Diseases Society of America, said the US has been bracing itself for another "high tide" like the one that engulfed New York City.

Today is a low tide, but "the waves are always coming in", he said.

BLOOMBERG