The county topped its record for daily cases of COVID-19 for the third day straight and tied its high in recorded deaths, according to state data.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health's report Friday, Butler County added 163 confirmed cases of the virus and seven deaths to its totals.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 4,341 residents have tested positive for COVID-19 and 117 have died due to the virus.

At the state level, 12,745 new confirmed cases, as well as 225 deaths. The state also reported a new high of 5,877 people hospitalized statewide with 1,218 of those being treated in intensive care units.

The latest orders imposing stricture COVID-19 mitigation efforts will begin at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and continue until 8 a.m. Jan. 4.

In a news conference Thursday, Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said the earliest the department expects to see results from the tactics could be two weeks from Saturday. Two weeks is believed to be the longest incubation period of the virus.

She suggested it may be more likely the results will show toward the end of the month, after the Christmas holiday.

This is a breaking news report — subscribe online or in print to read the full article.