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COVID-19 became the third biggest cause of deaths in the week of March 30 to April 4, trailing heart disease and cancer. It killed more people than stroke, chronic lower respiratory disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, kidney disease or influenza. In that week, close to 10,000 people died of the illness caused by the coronavirus. The flu, which Trump and others have invoked when discussing COVID-19, led to 1,870 deaths (a figure that includes pneumonia) over the same time frame. A spike in the week-by-week accounting came in mid-April, when COVID-19 cases became the leading cause of death. The disease returned to the third deadliest spot in the week of May 4 to 9 and has stayed there since. (10/8)

The US is averaging more than 45,000 new Covid-19 positive tests each day -- up 8% from the previous week and more than double what the country was seeing in June, as lockdown restrictions were easing. It's a case count experts warn is far too high ahead of what's forecast to be a challenging -- and deadly -- winter season. The latest US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ensemble forecast says US Covid-19 deaths could reach 233,000 by the end of this month. (Maxouris, 10/9)

The Northeast, devastated by the coronavirus in the spring and then held up as a model of infection control by summer, is now seeing the first inklings of what might become a second wave of the virus, an ominous prospect for the region and a sharp warning to the rest of the country. The rise in new cases has prompted state and local officials to reverse course, tightening restrictions on businesses, schools and outdoor spaces. (Mervosh and Bosman, 10/9)

As New York officials on Thursday hurriedly launched a targeted lockdown to stamp out rising rates of positive coronavirus test results, chaos, confusion and tension erupted over restrictions that are closing schools and businesses and greatly limiting attendance at places of worship. There were competing hot-spot maps, issued by Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City and then by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, which overlapped and contradicted each other. Schools and businesses that were to be shut down on one map were not on the other. The city, where the rules took effect on Thursday in parts of Brooklyn and Queens, made a searchable online database of addresses available so New Yorkers could determine which zone they were in. (10/9)

New Jersey officials say they are bracing for a second wave of the coronavirus, with the state recording 1,301 new Covid-19 cases, the highest amount in a single day since May. In a briefing on Thursday, Gov. Phil Murphy described the number as “sobering” and pleaded with residents to practice social distancing and wear masks. (Landergan, 10/8)

A surge of coronavirus cases in Wisconsin and the Dakotas is forcing a scramble for hospital beds and raising political tensions, as the Upper Midwest and Plains emerge as one of the nation’s most troubling hot spots. ... “It’s an emotional roller coaster,” said Melissa Resch, a nurse at Wisconsin’s Aspirus Wausau Hospital, which is working to add beds and reassign staff to keep up with a rising caseload of virus patients, many gravely ill. “Just yesterday I had a patient say, ’It’s OK, you guys took good care of me, but it’s OK to let me go,’” Resch said. “I’ve cried with the respiratory unit, I’ve cried with managers. I cry at home. I’ve seen nurses crying openly in the hallway.” (Geller and Groves, 10/8)