Saskatchewan hit a new high with 52 COVID-19 patients reported in intensive care units (ICUs) at the province’s hospitals.
There is a total of 186 hospitalizations due to the virus while 134 are receiving inpatient care, according to a press release on Friday.
Saskatchewan added one COVID-19-related death for a total of 471 since the pandemic began. The recently deceased, an individual in their 60s, was reported in the Regina zone.
Health officials said on Friday there were 245 new cases, with the overall infection total in Saskatchewan now at 39,392. The seven-day average of new daily infections is up from 248 on Thursday to 251.
According to the provincial government, 170 new variants of concern (VOC) cases have been identified in Saskatchewan while the total (5,691) is reported as follows: far north west (64), far north east (2), north west (122), north central (76), north east (9), Saskatoon (576), central west (75), central east (236), Regina (3,286), south west (143), south central (444) and south east (596) zones. The residences of 62 VOC cases are pending.
Active cases, which are total cases minus recoveries and deaths, now sit at 2,463 in Saskatchewan, according to the press release.
The total number of people who have recovered from the virus has grown to 36,458 following 296 more recoveries, provincial health officials said.
According to the press release, 4,157 COVID-19 tests were performed on Thursday. To date, 745,435 tests have been carried out in the province.
A total of 382,135 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Saskatchewan, provincial government officials said.
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, visit the Global News coronavirus web page.