ATLANTA — Deaths from COVID-19 in Georgia have risen nearly 1,000% since Aug. 1, according to data from the Georgia Department of Health.

An average of 93.7 Georgians a day are currently dying of the virus, which represents a 977% increase since the beginning of August.

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Nationally, 1 in 500 Americans have died of COVID-19.

That number is much higher in many Georgia counties, particularly in rural and south Georgia.

In more than 60% of Georgia counties, 1 in 350 people have died of the virus, according to data from the New York Times. At least 1 in 200 people have died of COVID-19 in 24 Georgia counties. Hancock County near Milledgeville has seen the most deaths by population, with 1 in every 117 people in the county dying of COVID-19.

In metro Atlanta, around 1 in 665 people have died of COVID-19.

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Over 20,000 Georgians have died of the virus in Georgia, over 1,000 in the last two weeks.

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Though cases of COVID-19 are seeing a steady drop in Georgia, deaths continue to rise among people already sickened by the virus. There are currently 5,000 COVID-19 patients in Georgia hospitals, down from a peak of 6,000 in the beginning of September.

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