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SAN DIEGO — Public health leaders are reporting 2,509 new cases of COVID-19 and 27 more deaths, bringing the county’s totals to 122,972 cases and 1,280 fatalities.

An additional 38 have been hospitalized with the coronavirus, according to county data, bringing the total to 1,263 patients in area hospitals. The data shows 309 people are now in intensive care county-wide with 19% of ICU beds still available.

SanDiegoCounty.gov

A total 34,250 tests were reported by the county Saturday with a 7% positivity rate. The 2,509 new cases follow a record 3,611 COVID-19 infections Friday. The cases surpassed the previous record set a week ago — 2,867. Friday was the first time the number of daily infections surpassed 3,000 as well as the 18th consecutive day with more than 1,000 cases.

The ICU availability rose from 16% to 19% Saturday as the county reported 27 new deaths attributed to coronavirus. Officials do not release information about ages and underlying conditions in their weekend updates. Click here to see the county’s breakdown of demographics of those who have died from COVID-19.

Eight new community outbreaks were reported Saturday. Officials said 143 cases of the virus are associated with 37 outbreaks confirmed in the past week.

Public health leaders say the county has seen a 220% increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations in the past 30 days and a 155% increase in ICU patients in the same time frame. The previous peak in hospitalizations in mid-July topped out at about 400 patients, compared to 1,263 people in area hospitals Saturday.

The 11-county Southern California region — which includes San Diego — remained at 0% intensive care unit capacity, according to state statistics. The number does not mean there were literally zero beds available, because the state rounds down where the rate of patients with COVID-19 is high. It put a stark punctuation point on a week of news about a health care system “on the brink of collapse,” according to public health leaders.

On Friday, an appeals court stayed a judge’s decision to halt enforcement of COVID-19 restrictions against San Diego County restaurants, meaning eateries must again abide by the state’s regional stay-at-home order.

For restaurants, it means returning to takeout and delivery service only, a letdown for some business owners who anticipated drawing in diners ahead of the holiday season.

Check back for updates on this developing story.