Saskatchewan has reached another milestone since the pandemic began with more than 500 total COVID-19-related deaths after two were added on Wednesday.
Both of the recently deceased were reported in the 70-79 age group and from the Saskatoon and Regina zones, according to a press release. There have now been 501 COVID-19-related deaths in the province.
Health officials said on Wednesday there were 196 new cases, with the overall infection total in Saskatchewan now at 42,203. Regina leads the province with 44 new infections.
The seven-day average of new daily infections is down to 224 from 226 on Tuesday. This is the lowest average reported since April 5 when it was 219.
According to the provincial government, 163 new variants of concern (VOC) cases have been identified in Saskatchewan while the total (7,580) is reported as follows: far north west (142), far north east (2), north west (246), north central (150), north east (32), Saskatoon (897), central west (87), central east (321), Regina (4,026), south west (236), south central (560) and south east (770) zones. The residences of 111 VOC cases are pending.
The province’s hospitals are currently providing care for 171 patients with COVID-19 — 132 are receiving inpatient care and 39 are in intensive care.
Active cases, which are total cases minus recoveries and deaths, now sit at 2,250 in Saskatchewan, according to the press release. This is the lowest number reported since April 8, when there were 2,141.
The total number of people who have recovered from the virus has grown to 39,452 following 250 more recoveries, provincial health officials said.
According to the press release, 3,255 COVID-19 tests were performed on Tuesday. To date, 786,125 tests have been carried out in the province.
A total of 470,715 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.