LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The coronavirus made 2020 Michigan’s deadliest year, driving a nearly 18% increase in deaths over 2019, according to preliminary state data.
It was the largest annual percentage jump since at least 1900, surpassing a 15.6% increase in 1918 — when the flu pandemic struck.
More than 115,300 people died in the state last year, up from about 97,800 the year before.
COVID-19 has been linked to nearly 16,700 deaths since February 2020.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will deliver a statewide address Wednesday, marking the one-year anniversary since Michigan’s first confirmed cases were announced and she declared an emergency.
SEE MORE: LIVE at 1:15 p.m.: Whitmer gives update on COVID-19 response on pandemic's 1-year anniversary