Mississippi is “exploding” with the highly contagious Delta variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus case, a key state health leader said Friday as the state released the latest data showing new cases continue to climb at a staggering rate.

“Delta variant is exploding in Mississippi @tatereeves,” Hattiesburg pediatrician Dr. Anita Henderson who is president of the Mississippi Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics wrote on social media. “Children under 12 are unable to be vaccinated. We must protect kids in schools and masks in schools are our safest option.”

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves has said he would not mandate face mask usage and other mitigation means again, in spite of growing warnings from the CDC and his own health department.

Mississippi State Department of Health officials reported that through Wednesday more than 800 people were hospitalized with either test-confirmed COVID-19 (776 patients) or suspected, but not yet test-confirmed COVID-19 (35 patients). Early in July, that combined number was less than 200 patients.

The state’s online tracking tools showed that in the Jackson area less than 10 ICU beds remained available through Wednesday.

Mississippi State Department of Health officials reported Friday that 1,643 new coronavirus cases were found in the last 24 hours.

The additional cases reported Friday brings the total number of cases found in the state since the pandemic began to 343,505.

The Mississippi State Department of Health reported 10 new deaths on Friday, bringing the total death toll to 7,543.

Mississippi health leaders have said that a combination of a low overall vaccination rate among Mississippians along with a rapidly spreading Delta variant is causing the recent surge in cases.

Through Thursday morning, approximately 37% of all Mississippians have received at least one shot of the COVID-19 vaccines available.

And approximately 32% of Mississippi’s population are fully vaccinated, the state reported.

For more detailed county-by-county vaccination results visit: https://msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/resources/12130.pdf

The 7-day, daily average of new cases jumped to 1,475 on Friday, the highest level since February 1. By comparison, the rate was 193 on July 1, meaning in approximately four weeks the average number of new cases has increased 665 percent since the start of July.

The 14-day, daily average of new cases rose to 1,193 with Friday’s update. It was the highest level since February 9.

Cumulative Cases and Deaths by County