Saskatchewan reports 4 new coronavirus cases

Saskatchewan reported four new cases of the novel coronavirus Saturday afternoon, bringing the provincial total to 1,615.

Two of the new cases are located in the Saskatoon area with the other two in the south west.

The province reported five more recoveries on Saturday bringing total recoveries to 1,548.

Active cases have dropped to 43. Of these active cases, 18 are in communal living settings, say health officials.

Here is a breakdown of where Saskatchewan’s active cases are:

• South West: 13
• Saskatoon: 10
• South Central: 8
• North West: 8
• Regina: 1
• Far North West: 1
• North East: 1
• Central West: 1

There are three people in the hospital, one of whom is receiving inpatient care in Saskatoon. The other two people are in the ICU in Saskatoon.

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Saskatchewan’s COVID-19 death toll remains at 24 people.

Coronavirus breakdown

Here is a breakdown of total Saskatchewan cases by age:

• 267 people are 19 and under
• 519 people are 20 to 39
• 494 are 40 to 59
• 277 people are 60 to 79
• 58 people are 80 and over

Females make up 51 per cent of the cases, males 49 per cent.

Officials said 825 cases are linked to community contact or mass gatherings, 236 are travel-related, 483 have no known exposure and 71 are under investigation by public health.

There have been 66 cases involving health-care workers to date.

Saskatchewan has completed 137,991 tests so far for the virus, up 1,658 from Friday.

Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:

Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.

To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.

For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.