2 new coronavirus deaths reported in Washington County

Photo illustration of the COVID-19 coronavirus. | Illustration by ktsimage/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — The Utah Department of Health reported on Sunday the deaths of two more Washington County residents from the coronavirus.

Medical personnel administer COVID-19 tests at the Intermountain drive-thru coronavirus testing site outside the InstaCare in Cedar City, Utah, on July 14, 2020. | Photo by Chris Reed, St. George News

One of those who died was a hospitalized male between the ages of 65 and 84. The other death was of a 65- to 84-year-old woman in a long-term care facility.

Along with an upsurge in cases, Southern Utah is seeing a spike in fatalities over the last week. Of the 36 people who have died of the coronavirus in the five-county area since March, 19.4% (seven people) have died in the last eight days. It is the highest death rate locally since the COVID-19 pandemic began here six months ago.

A large part of the spike in cases and deaths has been because of outbreaks at five local nursing home facilities. The biggest outbreak is at Hurricane Health and Rehabilitation, where St. George News has learned the number of staff and patients infected is in the double-digits.

Along with the new deaths, the Utah Department of Health reported 43 new infections in Southern Utah in Sunday. It was the fifth-straight day with more than 40 new cases in the area.

Chart shows deaths in Southern Utah from the coronavirus since May 1 to Oct. 4, 2020 according to the Southwest Utah Public Health Department. | Chart by Chris Reed, St. George News | Click to enlarge

The Southwest Utah Public Health Department does not release updated hospitalization or county-by-county numbers on Sundays.

The state had its fourth-straight day with more than 1,000 new infections, marking 1,393 new cases Sunday.

Utah is not alone in seeing a surge in coronavirus infections. The Centers for Disease Control said Saturday, they saw the highest number of new COVID-19 infections in the nation in one day since the pandemic began. Among those dealing with the disease is President Donald Trump, who continues to be hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington D.C.

COVID-19 information resources

St. George News has made every effort to ensure the information in this story is accurate at the time it was written. However, as the situation and science surrounding the coronavirus continues to evolve, it’s possible that some data has changed.

We invite you to check the resources below for up-to-date information and resources.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2020, all rights reserved.

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