Death toll in Saskatchewan rises by 5 as coronavirus recoveries surpass 6K

Five coronavirus-related deaths were added to Saskatchewan’s death toll Wednesday for a total of 71, according to the provincial government.

All of the deceased, who tested positive for COVID-19, were Regina zone residents and in the 80-plus age group, according to a press release.

Health officials said there were 302 new cases in the daily update on Wednesday, with the overall total for the province growing to 10,899 since the first case was reported in March. They added the new seven-day average of daily cases stayed at 273.

“It’s still remaining high. It’s not going much higher quickly, which is what we feared but it’s also not coming down and staying between the 250 to 300 (cases a day) mark. Our test positive rate is also staying at that 8.5 per cent mark and trending up slightly,” Saskatchewan’s chief medical health officer, Dr. Saqib Shahab, said during a press conference on Wednesday morning.

According to the press release, most of the new cases are located in the Regina zone with 131, while there are 59 in Saskatoon, 35 in north central, 26 in north west, 15 in far north east, 14 in far north west, five in south east, four each in central west and south west, three in south central, two in central east as well as one each in far north central and north east. Residence information is still pending for two new infections.

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There are 4,707 active cases in the province, health officials said. Active cases are total cases less recoveries and deaths.

In the province, 140 people are currently in hospital with COVID-19 — 113 are receiving inpatient care and 27 are in intensive care.

Shahab added that COVID-19 hospitalizations are still trending up.

“Because hospitalizations and ICU admissions lag two to three weeks behind cases, they are still trending up. So I think there’s some hope for optimism that we may be plateauing. But obviously, some concern that obviously hospitalizations and ICU admissions are trending up,” Shahab said.

More than 250 people have recovered as of Wednesday, bringing total recoveries to 6,121.

According to the press release, 2,650 COVID-19 tests were performed on Tuesday in Saskatchewan. To date, 372,405 tests have been carried out in the province.

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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.

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