“We have the fastest growth rate of confirmed cases in the world over the first 13 days, right here in Louisiana,” Edwards told reporters on Sunday. “In the last two weeks, our growth rate has been faster than any state or country in the world. This is why it matters.”
“That’s a ten-time increase in seven days,” Edwards also explained during the news conference, citing a jump to 800 cases in a week. “There is no reason to believe that we won’t be the next Italy,” the governor also warned. Edwards was citing a study from the University of Louisiana Lafayette for his data.
In South Korea, measures much like a statewide order that is set to go into effect on Monday, effectively reduced the number of cases, he said. That’s one of the reasons why he made the decision to ban all but the most essential travel and work across the state.
Christina Fay, board director of Lambeth House in New Orleans, told the news outlet that several have died at the facility in recent days, adding that staff and the local community are devastated.
“Lambeth House is truly a community of people who care deeply about one another. Any single death of a resident is felt very acutely by one and all,” Fay said to CNN. “The intensity of sadness that accompanies what our community is currently enduring is almost indescribable.”
Meanwhile, officials have reported 20 cases in East Baton Rouge Parish, and Ascension Parish has 17 cases, according to the website.