93-3-WMR Audio on Demand presents the Preston and Steve show podcast.

And now Preston and Steve's news updates with Kathy Romano.

And today is Tuesday, October 20th. Good morning, Kathy.

Good morning. In the news this morning, COVID-19 cases continue to soar across the country,

and one top infectious disease expert warned Americans that the next few months will be the darkest

of the pandemic. Health experts say the predicted fall surge is here in rising cases across the U.S.

appear to bear that out. The U.S. is averaging more than 55,000 new cases a day, and 10 states reported its highest single-day case counts on Friday.

At least 27 states, including New Jersey and Pennsylvania, are showing an upward trend in the number of cases reported, according to a CNN analyst of data from John Hopkins University.

The next six to 12 weeks are going to be the darkest of the entire pandemic.

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota told NBC's meet the press on Sunday.

Osterholm highlighted the 70,000 cases of COVID-19 reported on Friday, which matched the

largest numbers seen during the peak of the pandemic.

Between now and the holidays, the U.S. will see numbers much, much larger than even the 67 to 75,000 cases, he said.

Governor Tom Wolfe on Monday told Pennsylvania residents to stay vigilant and stay together on the fight against COVID-19.

Despite the climbing totals, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease doctor, said a nationwide

lockdown is not the way forward unless the pandemic gets really, really bad. Americans can help

get the virus under control, experts say, by heating guidelines touted by officials for months,

avoiding crowded settings, practicing social distancing, keeping small gatherings outdoors,

and wearing a mask. As of Monday, there were

more than 8.1 million cases and 219,765 coronavirus deaths in the United States, according to data

from John Hopkins University. Coronavirus numbers in Pennsylvania are now mirroring those seen

in late April. New state infection rates have eclips 1,000 per day for the last two weeks straight.

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