Coronavirus: no new deaths, 75 people test positive on Thursday (Updated)

The health ministry on Thursday announced 75 new positives for coronavirus, for a positivity rate of 0.17 per cent, while the number of the hospitalised continue to drop.

No new deaths occurred, with the death toll still standing at 357, and the average age of the deceased at 78 years.

On the hospital front, 82 patients were being treated for Covid-19 across the island, of whom 34 in a serious condition. Of the 34 in a serious condition, 20 were intubated, four treated in ICU without intubation, and 10 in a high-dependency unit.

The Famagusta referral hospital had 14 patients; Nicosia general hospital 36; Limassol general 23; Larnaca four; and Makarios Hospital five.

Overall 44,513 PCR and antigen rapid tests were carried out. The 75 latest positives bring the total since the outbreak last year to 72,234.

The latest positives broke down as follows: 11 from 217 samples processed through contact tracing; three from 2,479 samples taken at the airports; ten from 1,418 samples taken through private initiative; three from 170 samples processed at the microbiology labs of general hospitals; three from 406 samples (antigen rapid tests) processed at private clinical labs and pharmacies; and 45 from 39,704 samples taken in the government’s free testing programme.

By district, and for rapid tests only, Limassol had the highest positivity at 0.24 per cent; then Nicosia at 0.11 per cent; Larnaca 0.10 per cent; and Paphos and Famagusta at 0.05 per cent.