Five people died from coronavirus between September 30 and October 6 while another 2,789 new infections were detected, the health ministry announced on Friday.

The deaths concerned three men and two women aged from 82 to 95 who died between October 1 and 5, raising the total number of coronavirus fatalities since the start of the pandemic to 1,187.

The new cases were traced from 68,015 rapid and PCR tests, giving a positivity rate of 4.1 per cent, the weekly report of the ministry showed.

Most cases, 2,631, were detected with a rapid test while the remaining 158 were after a PCR.

Of those found positive through rapid testing, 13 were residents or staff in nursing homes, and two were from the national guard. Six cases were found during testing in primary schools and ten in secondary schools.

Meanwhile, there are 44 patients with Covid-19 hospitalised across the island, of whom four are in serious condition. Two are intubated, while a further two remain intubated due to the virus despite them no longer being infectious.