Donald Trump: Louisiana Coronavirus Cases ‘Went Like a Rocket Ship’

President Donald Trump said Tuesday at the White House the sudden rise in coronavirus cases in Louisiana demonstrated the lethality of the virus

“I love that state and I’m saying they’re in great shape than they have Mardi Gras. It was a big success. Tremendous success… and then all of a sudden, it went like a rocket ship,” Trump said during the evening coronavirus press briefing.

Coronavirus deaths jumped 29 percent on Tuesday in Louisiana, as 54 people died from the virus, for a total of 239 in the state.

“It started off very late, and it was looking good and then all of a sudden it just reared up, came from nowhere,” Trump said, referring to the coronavirus in Louisiana.

Louisiana went from four fatalities from the virus reported on March 16 to 239 fatalities by March 31. At one point, Louisiana reported more than 150 deaths in 24 hours.

Nurses and doctors are reporting that they are running short on protective medical gear, already reusing their N95 masks and gowns and gowns for days. Ten days ago, hospitals in Louisiana were already asking for donations of masks, goggles, and gloves as they were facing a shortage.

Currently, there are 1,355 patients in the hospital and 438 patients on ventilators. Vice President Mike Pence said Tuesday that FEMA was sending 152 ventilators to Louisiana. FEMA and the Army Corp of Engineers already built a 3000-bed alternate care site at the New Orleans convention center and a 500-bed hospital for patients.

Trump warned all Americans to prepare for a “very tough two weeks” regarding coronavirus deaths.

“I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead,” he said adding, “I think a lot of us are predicting after having studied it so hard, we are going to start seeing some real light at the end of the tunnel. But this is going to be a very painful very, very painful two weeks.”