https://www.mercurynews.com/2020/08/08/coronavirus-deaths-up-hospitalizations-down-in-california-amid-case-data-disaster/

California reported 186 deaths from COVID-19 on Friday, the fourth-deadliest day on record, the same day officials announced Gov. Gavin Newsom had ordered an investigation into errors that led to a backlog of up to 300,000 lab records in the state’s coronavirus tracking system.

The state entered Friday with a seven-day average of 145 daily deaths. Since July 29, the state has reported the four deadliest days of the pandemic, including 215 deaths on July 31 and 197 deaths on Aug. 4. The 186 deaths Friday bring the state total to 10,210 COVID-19 fatalities. California counties also reported 7,944 new cases for a total of 549,153 cases, although problems with the state’s reporting system mean those are an underreporting of daily positive cases.