MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota exceeded more than 2,000 daily cases of the coronavirus on Thursday for the first time in months as cases in recent weeks continue to trend upward.

The Minnesota Department of Health reported 2,140 new cases and 12 more people have died due to the coronavirus, putting the state’s totals at 521,667 cases and 6,860 deaths since the start of the pandemic. More than 400 patients are hospitalized due to COVID-19, including 105 in intensive care.

Two of today’s deaths came from residents in the Lakeland viewing area:

• A Beltrami County resident between the ages of 45-49
• A Morrison County resident between the ages of 60-64

The 2,140 new cases came from 43,117 tests for a case positivity rate of 5.0%. The seven-day rolling average for case positivity is now at 5.4%.

State health officials have said case growth is being driven by more contagious mutations of the coronavirus, specifically a variant that was first detected in the United Kingdom in January. Officials expressed concern over transmission of the variant within communities across the state as the test positivity rate climbed over the caution threshold of 5% earlier this week amid efforts to ramp up the state’s vaccination progress.

In the Lakeland viewing area, the state reported new cases in the following counties:

• Aitkin – 7
• Beltrami – 3
• Cass – 7
• Crow Wing – 26
• Hubbard – 2
• Itasca – 22
• Koochiching – 5
• Lake of the Woods – 2
• Mahnomen – 4
• Mille Lacs – 13
• Morrison – 20
• Polk – 5
• Roseau – 15
• Todd – 9

By — Destiny Wiggins