— 103 new cases recorded in 24 hrs

THERE have now been 51 deaths recorded in the month of April so far, following the deaths of two men and a woman on Sunday, according to the Ministry of Health.

The latest fatalities are a 80-year-old man from Region Four (Demerara- Mahaica); a 51-year-old man from Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) and a 55-year-old woman from the same region. The Health Ministry said that they all died while receiving care at a medical facility on Saturday.

These three fatalities have resulted in the total number of COVID deaths recorded for the country, since March last year when the pandemic began, rising to 284. This April is now the deadliest month of the pandemic, locally. October, last year, was previously the deadliest month with 44 deaths.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health via their COVID-19 daily dashboard reported that an additional 103 people were infected over a 24-hour period. This means that 12,703 cases have been recorded since March last year. There have been 10,786 recoveries, however.

These new cases came from several regions, including: Region One (one case), Region Two (23 cases), Region Three (13 cases), Region Four (49 cases), Region Five (seven cases), Region Six (six cases), Region Nine (three cases) and Region 10 (one case). Additionally, 55 men were newly infected while 48 women were infected over the 24-hour period.

Importantly, there are 1,643 active cases, that is, people who are currently infected with COVID-19. In the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU), there are 12 of these active cases; the rest of these cases are in home isolation (1,548 people), institutional isolation (73 people) and institutional quarantine (10 people).

Many of the persons infected with the virus are said to be asymptomatic; that is, they are not exhibiting any symptoms.
The updated COVID–19 Emergency Measures are in force from April 1, 2021, until April 30, 2021. They may be extended or amended by notice of the Minister of Health, after an assessment of the prevailing public health conditions of the pandemic.

As per the current measures, however, all persons are required to wear face masks when leaving their homes. Physical distancing and adequate sanitisation are also important. The current curfew time is 22:30hrs to 04:00 hours. Persons with symptoms of COVID-19 are asked to call the COVID-19 hotline numbers: 231-1166; 226-7480; or 180/181 for assistance.