ATLANTA — Georgia added more than 770 COVID-19 cases overnight, surpassing the 50,000 total cases mark.

As of 3 p.m. Friday, the state reported 50,621 confirmed coronavirus cases and 2,174 related deaths, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.

That’s up from 49,847 cases and 2,147 deaths Thursday.

GDPH Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey said Tuesday she is worried the protests around Georgia could cause more infections of the coronavirus.

Hundreds to thousands have gathered in Atlanta during the past five days to protest police brutality stemming from George Floyd’s death by a Minneapolis police officer. Despite wearing masks, social distancing is near impossible in those close quarters.

“When you have this many people gathered together in close proximity,” Toomey said, “you run the risk of viral transmission.”

The department reports 8,646 people have been hospitalized due to coronavirus and 1,897 people have been admitted into intensive care units; however, the website notes the number could be underreported. 

Nearly 508,000 Georgians have been tested for the virus and the state is reporting just under a 9% positive result rate.

The department reported black Georgians account for 16,137 cases while white Georgians account for 16,382 cases. The race of 13,907 cases is listed as unknown.

Tuesday, the Department of Public Health started updating numbers once daily at 3 p.m. to allow more time to coordinate with reporting facilities and verify numbers before posting.