PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — One group of South Dakotans marked the Thanksgiving holiday by setting up a makeshift memorial near the state Capitol for those who have died from COVID-19.
A group called Stop the Spread set up over 800 empty chairs on the Capitol grounds, representing each person who has died.
The state has tallied 849 COVID-19 deaths, with 424 of those deaths coming in November.
While the state maintained one of the nation’s lowest death rates per capita throughout the summer and into the fall, a wave of cases has led to a skyrocketing rate of deaths in recent weeks.
