Missouri reports record-breaking 1,138 new coronavirus cases

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri on Tuesday reported more than 1,100 new coronavirus cases, once again breaking its own record for the largest single-day increase in cases.

Data from the state health department show 34,762 people have tested positive for COVID-19 since the virus first struck Missouri, a 1,138 increase in reported cases compared to Monday.

Missouri last set its record for the largest increase in cases reported in a single day on Saturday, when the state announced another 958 people sickened by the virus.

Deaths from the virus have slowed, but it's killed 1,143 people in Missouri so far.

The state's health department director has said cases among young people are driving the surge.

Kansas City's mayor on Tuesday said local K-12 schools should wait until after Labor Day to reopen because of the hike in cases among children and teenagers.

Mayor Quinton Lucas stopped short of issuing an order, The Kansas City Star reported. He said he didn't feel the need to because "almost every school district has acted responsibly throughout this crisis."

Kansas City Health Department director Rex Archer said delaying in-person classes will give schools more time to prepare and allow more time for coronavirus cases to drop among students.

Meanwhile, a Missouri women's prison now requires corrections officers to wear face masks in more areas around prisoners.

Previously, Chillicothe Correctional Center required officers to wear masks when entering a quarantined area or when they were around prisoners who tested positive for or showed symptoms of COVID-19.

Now guards are required to wear masks in the housing units, cafeterias, recreation area and other places within the women's facility, The Kansas City Star reported.

Inmates across the state previously told the newspaper many guards chose not to wear face coverings that can help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.