While the overall epidemiological situation in Cyprus seems to be improving, Limassol remains a major concern, Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou told a press briefing on Friday, giving an update on the country’s COVID-19 vaccination programme.
“Since December, there has been a great difference when comparing Limassol to other districts,” he said, adding that in recent weeks it was even more intense.
Ioannou said that while the cumulative diagnosis rate in the other districts was below 150 per 100,000 people over the last 14 days, which is the safety benchmark set by the EU, in Limassol this number was more than double, at around 335.
In total, between January 27 and February 9, some 835 cases were detected in the Limassol area, 370 in Nicosia, 181 in Larnaca, 61 in Paphos and 51 in Famagusta district. Another 38 were reported either in the British bases or had a residence abroad, or information for which was not available.
“This is of particular concern to us, which is why today all the relevant ministries have been instructed to intensify their controls,” the minister said, adding that testing would be intensified in Limassol in the next few days.
He stressed that authorities are not looking to single out Limassol, but “Limassolians will have to try harder,” calling on all the district’s population to get tested.
Meanwhile, as of February 9, the latest national report said 31,704 cases of COVID-19 had been diagnosed.
In the last 14 days (January 27-February 9), some 1,536 cases have been confirmed. The 14-day cumulative diagnosis rate of COVID-19 (per 100,000 population) for the island is 173 per 100,000 population.
Among the 1,536 cases diagnosed since January 27, 50.3% were female (n =773), 49.6% male (n = 762), and for one case the information is not currently available.
By age group, cases included 253 infants, children and adolescents aged 0-19 (16.5%), 1,018 adults aged 20-59 years (66.3%), and 265 persons aged 60 years and older (17.2%).
The median age of all cases diagnosed in the last 14 days is 38 years (IQR: 25-54 years). The median age of adult cases (≥ 18 years) is 42 years (IQR: 30-56 years).
Deaths
A total of 217 COVID-19 associated deaths were reported in the Republic of Cyprus until February 10 (Case Fatality Risk – CFR: 0.7%).
The COVID-19 associated mortality rate is 24.4 per 100,000 population.
Deaths occurred in 148 men (68.2%) and 69 (31.8%) women; the median age of all COVID-19 associated deaths was 81 years (IQR: 73-87 years).
By district, 74 deaths (34.1%) were in Nicosia, 64 (29.5%) in Limassol, 42 (19.4%) in Larnaca, 17 (7.8%) in Paphos, 14 (6.5%) in Famagusta and six deaths (2.8%) occurred among cases reported either in the British bases or had a residence abroad, or information was not available.
