Fresno City Council Declares State Of Emergency Over Low ICU Beds & Staff

The Fresno City Council is declaring a state of emergency due to the lack of ICU beds and healthcare worker shortages in Fresno County, according to FOX26.

A virtual meeting was held on Thursday, December 10 to declare the State of Emergency.

As of Friday, December 11, all adult ICU beds are full, all child ICU beds are full, and over 50% of neonatal ICU beds are full. There are also no available ICU beds at the Fresno Convention Center.

"We have no more ICU beds. We can't create them overnight," said Fresno City Council President Miguel Arias during Thursday's meeting. "There is no more medical staff to staff a backup hospital at the Convention Center. This is a moment we were all trying to avoid. It's not that we're making things up."

The San Joaquin Valley is currently placed on a regional stay-at-home order since the ICU capacity dropped below 15% last week.

City council members are asking Fresno residents to take the next few weeks extremely seriously to help relieve some of the strain healthcare workers in the Valley are currently experiencing.

On Friday, December 12, at 12:12 P.M., the California Department of Public Health released the latest ICU capacities across the Central Valley:

• Fresno County: 8 open beds
• Kings County: 1 open bed
• Madera County: 7 open beds
• Merced County: 8 open beds
• Tulare County: 7 open beds
• Mariposa County: Does not have an Intensive Care Unit

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