Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a 30-day state of emergency to combat a surge in COVID-19 cases, mobilizing 1,000 members of the state’s National Guard to assist state and local health authorities. .
Hogan made the announcement as Maryland has reached 3,057 hospitalized for COVID-19, a state record and an increase of more than 500% in the past seven weeks.
The governor said projections show hospitalizations for virus infections might reach more than 5,000.
“The truth is that the next four to six weeks will be the most challenging of the entire pandemic,” Hogan told a news conference.
“All the emergency actions we are taking are to prevent our hospitals from overflowing, to keep our children in schools, and to keep Maryland open for business. We will continue to take the necessary actions in the coming days and weeks, which will be very difficult ”.
