Coronavirus update: Virginia reports 2,884 deaths, 136,359 total cases Wednesday

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Here’s the latest on Virginia’s COVID-19 data for Wednesday, September 16.

The Virginia Department of Health reported 136,359 cases of COVID-19. 2,884 people have lost their lives. A total of 10,389 people have been hospitalized for the novel coronavirus.

The Commonwealth continues to see roughly a thousand new cases being reported each day.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Gov. Ralph Northam provided an update on the state’s COVID-19 response.

“I continue to remind everyone in Virginia to keep doing things we know work,” Northam said.

The Governor urged people to download the state’s exposure notification app called COVIDWISE. He said more than a half a million adults have done so to date, representing an estimated 12 percent of Virginians between the ages of 18 and 65.

Health officials have said the app relies on widespread use to work. They were originally hoping to see at least 50-60 percent of adults download it.

“This tool has great potential to help us curb the spread of this virus,” Northam said.

COVID-19 at local universities

Virginia Commonwealth University

As of Sept. 15, the college has reported:

• 42 active student cases and 11 active employee cases of COVID-19.
• 9 students are in isolation on campus.
• 20 students are in quarantine on campus.

University of Richmond

As of Sept. 14, here is what the college has reported:

• 15 total cases and 3 active cases of COVID-19.
• The university said there were 25 people who tested positive before arriving on campus.
• 0.4 percent cumulative testing positivity rate

James Madison University

The university’s dashboard as of Sept. 14 shows that:

• 307 total (students and employees) active cases.
• 1,062 people have recovered from the virus since July.
• The overall positivity rate of the university’s health center’s test is 24.96%
• Read about one JMU student’s experience with COVID-19 here.

COVID-19 cases in Central Virginia