A pandemic of the novel coronavirus has now infected more than 84.6 million people worldwide and killed over 1.8 million of them, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Here's how the news developed this week. All times Eastern.
Dec 31, 2020, 8:59 PM EST
Case of UK variant found in Florida
Florida has identified its first case of the U.K. COVID-19 variant, health officials said Thursday night.
The case is in a Martin County man in his 20s "with no history of travel," the Florida Department of Health said on Twitter.
A Florida Department of Health medical worker prepares to administer a COVID-19 vaccine in the parking lot of the Gulf View Square Mall in New Port Richey near Tampa, Fla., Dec. 31, 2020.
Octavio Jones/Reuters
This marks the third state in the U.S., following Colorado and California, to identify cases of the variant.
U.K. health officials have found that the new COVID-19 variant isn’t more deadly than the prior dominant variant, but it is likely more transmissible. Experts also believe that the authorized vaccines will still be effective against it.
Dec 31, 2020, 8:27 PM EST
December deadliest month of the pandemic in US
December was the deadliest month of the pandemic in the U.S., even with data disruptions due to the holidays, according to The COVID Tracking Project.
There were 76,580 reported deaths due to COVID-19 this month, far surpassing the previous record of 55,267 set in April. Every week in December was deadlier than any week earlier in the year, the tracker said.
There were 221,444 new cases and 3,255 deaths reported on Thursday, according to the tracker. A record 125,379 people are also currently hospitalized with COVID-19.
There continue to be disruptions in testing, case and death figures due to the holidays, though hospitalizations "remain relatively stable," the tracker said.
Dec 31, 2020, 6:38 PM EST
LA County breaks record for COVID-19 deaths
Los Angeles County reported a record-breaking 290 new COVID-19 deaths on Thursday, health officials said.
There have been 10,345 total COVID-19 deaths in the county.
Someone dies of COVID-19 in L.A. County every 10 minutes, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said. All day Thursday, the department is tweeting a description of a potential COVID-19 victim every 10 minutes.
Barbara Ferrer, director of the health department, warned that "hundreds more people" will die each week from COVID-19 and urged people to stay home this New Year's Eve and throughout the weekend.
"As we see 2020 come to a close, we are experiencing extreme conditions in LA County," Ferrer said during a briefing. "With no decline in the number of new cases, our hospitals continue to be overwhelmed."
The county reported 15,129 new cases while 7,546 people are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, officials said. The daily test-positivity rate is an "alarming" 22%, Ferrer said.
The latest numbers come as the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is mobilizing a "super-spreader task force" to target illegal parties.
As of Wednesday, the department had made 235 arrests this month at "super-spreader" events, Sheriff Alex Villanueva said.
ABC News' Matthew Fuhrman and Michelle Mendez contributed to this report.
Dec 31, 2020, 6:19 PM EST
California bar owner charged for allegedly breaking COVID-19 curfew
A California bar owner has been charged for allegedly breaking his county's COVID-19 curfew, authorities said Thursday.
Roland Michael Barrera, the owner of the Westend Bar in Costa Mesa, has been charged with one misdemeanor count of violating and neglecting to obey a lawful order and regulation, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said.
Barrera has "repeatedly" refused to follow the county's curfew order for nonessential businesses, the district attorney's office alleged.
All nonessential businesses must close between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. due to an emergency lockdown order issued on Nov. 19, the office said. "On multiple occasions the Westend Bar continued to operate outside of the mandated closure time," the district attorney's office said in a statement.
The owner of Westend, a bar in Costa Mesa, Calif., was arrested for breaking the county's COVID-19 curfew.
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The bar has also allegedly hosted "50-70 customers without enforcing social distancing or facial coverings for their employees or customers," it said.
Until now, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said it has declined to file charges in nearly two dozen cases against business owners accused of operating illegally during the pandemic. The charge comes after law enforcement made "repeated attempts" to educate Barrera on the law and seek voluntary compliance, authorities said.
A manager of the bar has also been charged with one misdemeanor count of resisting a police officer after allegedly grabbing a uniformed officer and "physically trying to prevent him from entering the Westend Bar" on Dec. 12, the district attorney's office said.
Both the bar owner and manager face a maximum sentence of one year in jail if convicted, though the DA's office said it hopes to pursue educational efforts instead of jail time. They are scheduled to be arraigned on June 22, 2021. ABC News' attempts to reach them were unsuccessful.
ABC News' Matthew Fuhrman contributed to this report.
