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Hospital Beds Installed at Temple University as Philadelphia Coronavirus Cases Top 1,000

An arena at Philadelphia’s Temple University was converted into an overflow hospital on March 30 as confirmed cases of COVID-19 topped 1,000 in the city.

Mayor Jim Kenney announced Friday that the university had agreed to make the Liacouras Center, which usually hosts sporting events, available to the city as a hospital space.

The Philadelphia Fire Department shared this timelapse footage Monday morning, showing beds being installed.

Plans for the site were undetermined, the fire department said. “It could be used to care for COVID-19 patients, or to relocate low-acuity patients from area hospitals to open more beds at those facilities,” the department said.

As of Monday morning, Philadelphia had reported more than 1,072 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, according to local reports citing health officials, from a total of 3,394 across the state. Thirty-eight people had died as a result of the virus, officials said. Credit: Philadelphia Fire Department via Storyful