Cases top 2,300; alternative care sites ready
Navajo Times | Cindy Yurth
Lt. Col. Robin Scott of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shows one of the 50 cubicles in the alternative care center set up for overflow COVID-19 patients in Chinle.
WINDOW ROCK
As of Friday evening, the total number of COVID-19 cases has reached 2,307 on the Navajo Nation, which includes 1,080 males, 1,227 females, and an average age of 45 years old.
The total number of deaths is 73, which includes 45 males, 28 females, and an average age of 66 years old. A total of 13,427 COVID-19 tests have been administered with 9,058 negative test results.
This constitutes 166 new cases, up slightly from the previous day. McKinley County continues to be a hot spot, causing the governor of New Mexico to seal off the city of Gallup for the weekend to discourage shoppers from spreading the virus.
Here’s the breakdown, listed by number of cases: McKinley County, New Mexico: 617; Apache County, Arizona: 538; Navajo County, Arizona: 513; Coconino County, Arizona: 286; San Juan County, New Mexico: 245; San Juan County, Utah: 42; Socorro County, New Mexico: 23; Cibola County, New Mexico: 22; Sandoval County, New Mexico: 21.
“The Navajo Nation continues to move up the curve on the number of positive cases and deaths,” stated President Jonathan Nez in a press release. “Last week, we began to see a slight flattening of the curve, but so many people continue to travel to border towns and now we’re seeing spikes in new cases again.”
The recent spike could also be due to more testing being conducted in each county, according to Nez.
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“Those who test positive will soon be able to isolate themselves at one of the alternative care sites and this will help to prevent the spread among families and communities,” stated Nez. “Let’s be strong and keep fighting together by staying home and avoiding hotshot areas.”
Alternative care centers have been set up by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Gallup, Chinle and Shiprock, adding a total of 150 new hospital beds for patients who don’t need intensive care.
Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow