Indiana Smashes COVID-19 Record, With 3,649 Cases, Reports 33 More Deaths

(CBS) -- Indiana reported a record 3,649 cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, breaking the old mark set last week by 800.  An additional 33 Hoosiers died of COVID, marking one of the deadliest days since the peak of the pandemic in April.

More than 4,200 patients have died from COVID this year and models show that the daily death toll could rise even more. The number of people in the hospital in the state 1,733 is near the record high set at the start of the outbreak. The number of ICU beds has also dropped below 30% statewide, while there are some regions that are closer to 20% capacity.

The pattern is the same in Northwest Indiana--where a record 447 cases were reported, as well as nine deaths, in the five county region. The number of deaths reported Thursday is the second worst in the area since the start of the pandemic. The region's positivity rate continues to rise and is now just under 10%.

Hospitalizations have dipped slightly in the past few days, but are still near the record highs.

Lake County, which is the most populous county in the region, also set a record for cases (270) and reported seven of the nine total regional deaths. The seven day daily average of cases in both Lake County and the state have skyrocketed in the past month, from just over 1,000 on Oct. 1 to 2,500 now in the state and from about 100 at the start of the month to 215 currently.