A nurse in Pennsylvania administers a Covid-19 test at a drive-through facility. | Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle/Getty Images

There were about 10,000 more new cases Friday than the previous same-day high on July 16.

The United States broke its record for the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported in a single day on Friday, an alarming sign that what some epidemiologists are calling a “third wave” of infections is spreading at breakneck speed as winter approaches.

According to the New York Times, by the end of the day on Friday, at least 85,085 cases were reported across the country — about 10,000 cases more than the previous same-day high on July 16.

Public health experts have long warned that uneven compliance with social distancing guidelines, inadequate contact tracing programs, and premature reopenings of indoor venues were creating conditions for a resurgence of virus