COVID19: No deaths, cases rise again

Cyprus reported no coronavirus deaths for the seventh time this month on Monday, with the number of new cases and hospitalisations edging higher.

The health ministry said in its daily Covid bulletin that the death toll remained unchanged at 552, keeping the September total at 40.

New cases rose significantly to 136 from 78 the day before, while the number of patients currently admitted at state hospitals for treatment rose by two to 81. Of these, 33 remain in serious condition, four more than the previous day.

Meanwhile, 15 patients remain intubated, while 74% of hospital patients are unvaccinated.

Another 11 patients are considered post-Covid, having recovered from the virus, but remain intubated and in a serious state.

The total number of all SARS-CoV-2 infections since March 2020 rose to 119,903.

The number of PCR and antigen rapid tests conducted during the past 24 hours dropped to 65,826, around 25,000 more than on Sunday.

This included 12,486 tests at high schools, with five positive results, while all 1,565 tests of pupils at primary schools were negative.

With a lower number of tests and 136 new infections, 58 more than the day before, the benchmark ‘test positivity’ rate remained rose marginally from 0.19% to 0.21% and remains well below the high-risk threshold of 1%.

Of the new cases, eight were identified from contact tracing, linked to earlier infections, five were passengers arriving at Larnaca and Paphos airports, and 46 were diagnosed from private initiative and hospital tests.

A further 63 cases were identified from private rapid tests at labs and pharmacies, and 14 were positive from the free national testing programme, available only to those vaccinated or recovered from earlier infections.

All of the 1,040 tests on staff and residents at retirement homes had negative results, as were all 37 hotel guests and 164 random rapid tests at airports.