Coronavirus: Two deaths and 270 new cases recorded on Sunday (Update)

Two more deaths were recorded on Sunday and 270 new coronavirus cases, the health ministry said.

A man, 72, and a woman, 86, died of Covid-19, according to the ministry. They both had underlying conditions but the cause of death was Covid-19. This brings the number of people who died of Covid-19 so far to 61: 39 men and 22 women.

In total 13 people died  of Covid-19 during the past week, the ministry said.

As regards cases, “one in eight tested for coronavirus was found positive,” the health ministry said.

Sunday’s 270 cases were among 2,090 lab tests, including 69 PCR verifications of positive rapid tests carried out in previous days.

Cases also include 96 people found positive through contact tracing and 84 people who got tested privately.

Sixteen cases were among samples processed in state hospitals’ labs and two were detected among tests given in schools. Three more cases were people referred for testing from their family physicians.

Another 5,828 rapid tests were carried out, 202 of which were found positive. These results will now have to be verified with PCR tests.

According to the ministry, 102 of the rapid tests that were positive were among tests given in the Nicosia district and 70 in Larnaca. In Limassol 12 positive tests were detected and 13 in the Famagusta district. Five were detected in Paphos.

The health ministry said that 121 patients with coronavirus are being treated in state hospitals, 18 in critical condition. Of these 18, 10 are intubated.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.