Over 100 people have died from the flu in California so far this season

Over 100 people have died in California from the flu this season, with 35 of them dying during the week of Jan. 11, according to data from the California Department of Public Health.

That week’s fatalities increased the overall number of flu deaths 50 percent. Last year, 75 people died during the same week and 32 people died in 2018, according to Record Searchlight.

Of the 105 flu deaths this year in California,five were children and 64 people were 65 and older, according to the data.

Most of the people in Los Angeles who have been hospitalized with the flu are under 45, Dr. Jeffrey Gunzenhauser told The Los Angeles Times.

“It’s very unusual,” Gunzenhauser said. “While a lot of people are sick, it’s mostly affecting young people — it looks like older people are protected.”

The most common flu strain is Influenza B, which can infect more young people than Influenza A, which is the typical flu virus, according to The Los Angeles Times.

While the number of states seeing high flu activity decreased from 36 to 34 the week of Jan. 11, it still remains widespread in all 50 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been an estimated 13 million flu illnesses, 120,000 people hospitalized, and 6,600 flu deaths so far, according to the CDC.

This story was originally published January 23, 2020 at 11:56 AM with the headline "Over 100 people have died from the flu in California so far this season."