Front-line workers in Florida say current COVID-19 surge 'feels like it's an impending storm'

"In early July, we were down to 12 COVID-19 patients in the hospital, and today we have 80."

A jarring reality check is taking place in intensive care units across the country as thousands of COVID-19 positive patients, nearly all of them unvaccinated, are streaming into hospitals in need of care. This is particularly true in Florida, where virus-related hospitalizations have skyrocketed in recent weeks. The situation has escalated rapidly, now nearing peak levels, with nearly 7,900 patients hospitalized with the virus across the state, up by more than 320% in the last month, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "It feels like it's an impending storm ... there's no off ramp to this getting worse," Dr. David Wein, an emergency room physician at Tampa General Hospital in Florida, told ABC News on Wednesday. On Tuesday this week, more than 1,450 patients with COVID-19 were admitted to hospitals across the state, marking the highest number of patients seeking care within a 24-hour period in Florida since the onset of the pandemic.