Coronavirus: two deaths, 410 new cases announced on Friday (Updated)

The health services on Friday announced two more deaths from Covid and 410 new cases.

The cases include 113 people found positive from rapid tests, which were confirmed through PCR.

According to a statement, 115 people are being treated in hospital, 25 in serious condition.

The total number of cases since March has reached 17,057 while Cyprus is now counting 87 deaths – 57 men and 30 women — attributed to Covid. The average age is 79.

The deaths concern two men.

One was a 89-year-old with underlying health issues, who was being treated at Famagusta Covid hospital, after being found positive at a Nicosia care home.

The second person who died was a 61-year-old, also with underlying health issues, who was also being treated at Nicosia general hospital.

Of the 25 people in critical condition in the island’s hospitals,12 are on ventilators and one is being treated in ICUs without intubation. Twelve people are in high dependency units.

Health authorities said the 410 new cases confirmed on Friday were from 12,042 tests.

Some 144 cases were detected among 1,016 samples taken as part of contact tracing while 130 cases emerged from 1,863 tests conducted by private initiative.

Two cases were found after 594 tests were carried out at airports.

Nineteen cases were detected in 426 samples tested by state hospital labs and one case was detected in 34 samples from people referred by GPs.

The ministry said they also carried out 7,910 antigen rapid tests with 199 positives. The results will have to be confirmed through PCR.

Turkish Cypriots announced 13 new cases on Friday, after 1,945 tests in the past 24 hours.

The total number of cases detected in the north since March reached 1,223 with six deaths.

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.