Florida continues to report record number of COVID-19 deaths

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Florida Department of Health on Thursday reported nearly 10,000 new cases of COVID-19, as well as a new record for deaths.

According to officials, 252 new deaths were reported Thursday. Florida has broken its record for deaths reported in a 24-hour period three days in a row.

On Wednesday, 217 new coronavirus-related deaths were reported.

Thursday’s new cases bring the state’s overall total number of confirmed coronavirus cases since the virus was first detected in Florida to 461,379.

Below is the state COVID-19 dashboard. If you are having trouble viewing the dashboard on mobile, click here.

As of 10:56 a.m. Thursday, the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration dashboard shows 8,425 people are currently receiving treatment at medical facilities across the state in relation to the virus.

The state’s daily positivity rate, which represents the number of people who tested positive for the first time divided by all the people that tested that day and excludes those who have previously tested positive was at 12.00% on Wednesday.

Statewide, 3,584,193 people have been tested for the novel coronavirus.

[RELATED: UPDATE: See Florida’s curve when it comes to coronavirus cases]

Here are four things to know for Thursday, July 30:

1. State testing suspended: The Florida Department of Health announced state-supported drive-thru and walk-up coronavirus testing sites will temporarily close at 5 p.m. on Thursday as Tropical Storm Isaias approaches the state. Free coronavirus testing will still be available through each county health department, more scheduling information can be found here.

For a list of Central Florida test sites closing, click or tap here.

2. Deadline approaches for parents to choose learning option: Deadlines are looming for schools to invite students back into classrooms. Volusia County school board member Ruben Colon said feedback from parents and guardians about how they want their students to learn is critical. School board members hope to know how many students will start the school year in buildings and need parents to reach out to schools. The deadline to select Brevard Virtual School and Volusia Online is July 31. Volusia County’s deadline to submit choice registration is July 30.

Parents of Central Florida students can find everything they need to know about their district’s back-to-school plan at ClickOrlando.com/backtoschool.

3. Gov. DeSantis would send children to school: Parents across Florida have had to decide whether to keep their students home or to send them back to schools in August amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is not one of those parents because his children are too young, he said he would send them for in-person learning.

4. Inmates die of COVID-19: Three women at two Florida state prisons in Marion County died due to complications of the coronavirus, according to the Florida Department of Health. Two women died at Lowell Correctional Institution and one woman died at Florida Women’s Reception Center. The state reported the deaths Wednesday in its COVID-19 inmate spreadsheet.

[READ NEXT: COVID-19 latest information for Orlando, Florida]

Here’s a county-by-county breakdown of total coronavirus numbers in the Central Florida region:

To keep up with the latest news on the pandemic, subscribe to News 6′s coronavirus newsletter and go to ClickOrlando.com/coronavirus.