The District recorded its 400th coronavirus-related death Monday, a sobering milestone even as the rate of transmission trends toward the reopening of the city.
As of Monday, the District reported 164 new positive cases of COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus, putting the overall total at 7,434.
The city’s eight latest COVID-19-related deaths, all Black senior citizens, include two women and three men with ages ranging from 62 to 91.
African Americans, while constituting 46 percent of the District’s population, make up 77 percent of its coronavirus-related deaths, the city health department reports.
Mayor Muriel Bowser has repeatedly urged residents to stay home and practice social distancing during the pandemic and to only leave their homes for essential reasons such as food and medication.
However, Bowser announced Monday that D.C. had gone eight days with a reduction in community spread, nearing the 14-day benchmark that the mayor and city officials want to meet before reopening the District.