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Santa Clara County had 2 COVID-19 deaths as early as February

By KTVU staff
Published  April 21, 2020 10:45pm PDT
Coronavirus in the Bay Area
KTVU FOX 2

Santa Clara County had 2 COVID-19 deaths in February

Santa Clara County officials announced on Tuesday that two people died of COVID-19 in February.

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Santa Clara County health officials announced that two people died of COVID-19 in February. Those two deaths, along with another on March 6, came before what was previously thought to be the first new coronavirus-associated death in the county on March 9.  

In Tuesday's revelation, the medical examiner-coroner said the unidentified victims died at their homes. The first death occurred February 6 and the second on February 17.

Autopsies were performed and samples sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Tuesday, tests from those samples were confirmed positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. 

All three cases happened during a time of limited testing when they were only available through CDC. 

The county medical examiner expects there will be more COVID-19 deaths revealed as they investigate death records.