The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus causing mounting casualties around the world continues to rise in Ohio. 

As of Friday afternoon, there have been 1,137 cases in Ohio. 

Those include 68 cases in Mahoning county, 7 in Columbiana and 24 in Trumbull. There is also a second confirmed death from the virus in Mahoning county and a second confirmed death in Trumbull county. Total deaths in the state are now up to 19, however those numbers will be updated once numbers from individual counties are added to the state total. 

That number is still considered to be a snapshot of the total number, since there remains a severe shortage of available tests in Ohio and around the country. 

Dr. Amy Acton, director of the Ohio Department of Public Health, said on Thursday that when Ohio hits its peak, there may be as many as 6-8,000 new cases per day. 

Acton said that despite that figure, efforts to encourage social distance are working, noting new figures indicate that without those efforts Ohio may have already hit its peak, which would have overwhelmed hospital systems and led to dramatic life or death decisions inside hospitals. 

Acton has stressed repeatedly that efforts to limit crowds, which include a shutdown of many nonessential businesses, are aimed at allowing hospitals more time to prepare for the eventual surge of new patients, which she has said cannot be avoided. 

In Friday's briefing, Governor DeWine said new modeling from the Cleveland Clinic indicates that new cases of the virus will pick up over the next two weeks and that hospital capacity will need to double or triple. 

He said he has asked for rough drafts of  regional plans for hospital expansion to be on his desk by Saturday morning at 8 a.m.

DeWine said the good news is that this was not unexpected and hospitals have been working on these plans for some time now.