[UPDATED] Country records 2 new covid19 deaths

More than five months after TT recorded its last covid19-related death, two people fell victim to the coronavirus on Friday, after a week of rising cases. The country now has a total of ten deaths attributed to the virus.

A Ministry of Health media release on Friday confirmed that Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram was told of the first death at 12.15 pm on Friday and the information was withheld until the family could be informed and allowed to grieve. The victim was described as an "elderly female with pre-existing medical conditions."

The second victim was reported in the ministry's 6 pm update on Friday and described as "an adult male with pre-existing medical conditions." No details of the time of death were provided.

TT's most recent death before Friday was reported by the ministry on April 6.

The ministry, however, also denied reports that five deaths were recorded at the Caura Hospital on Thursday and urged the public to follow information from the ministries of health and communications only.

Newsday tried to contact Dr Parasram for information on whether or not the woman was warded at a covid19 treatment facility but was unsuccessful.

It was announced on Friday that the Prime Minister would host a media conference on Saturday at 2.30 pm at the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann's, Port of Spain. While it was not stated what would be announced at the conference, it is believed that additional measures to control the spread of the virus will be announced.

Contacted for comment, CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Nirad Tewarie said while he did not want to assume what measures would be discussed or implemented by the government, he hoped there would be better collaboration between the state and the business sector if more stringent precautions were taken to control the spread of the virus.

"We expect and hope the government will follow the best available medical advice and guidance so we can minimise the impact on health and life of the disease.

"If there is a need to put in place formal restrictions or measures in keeping with that advice what we would ask for is there is a better form of engagement than before because in the first wave of lockdown while there was communication, there was not a meaningful adoption of some of the recommendations from the business community."

On Wednesday, Parasram warned that there could be a potential spike in the number of covid19 cases in TT in the coming days.

The Ministry of Health's covid19 update on Friday reported that 14 additional cases were from samples taken between August 6 to Friday. There are now 277 active cases.

A total of 78 cases were recorded on Wednesday alone with 43 cases from the Ministry of Health's 10 am update and 35 cases from its 6 pm update.

This story was originally published with the title "
Elderly woman is latest covid19 death" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

An elderly woman with a pre-existing medical condition has become the latest person to die from covid19 in TT, a Ministry of Health media release on Friday said.

The ministry said Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram was told of the death at 12.15 pm on Friday and the information was withheld until the family could be informed and allowed to grieve.

The last death from covid19 was recorded on April 6. It was reported that person also suffered from pre-existing medical conditions.

The release also denied reports that five deaths were recorded at the Caura Hospital on Thursday and urged the public to follow information from the ministries of health and sommunications only.

The public is also asked to take the necessary precautions against the spread of the coronavirus by observing public health guidelines by wearing face masks in public, regular hygiene and practise physical distancing.

This story was originally published with the title "TT records 10th covid19 death" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

A man and a woman, both with pre-existing medical conditions, are the latest people to die from covid19.

In a media release at about 7 pm on Friday, the Health Ministry said an elderly man was the latest death. This followed the ministry's 2 pm update which said a woman had died around 12.15 pm, but that information was withheld until the family was informed.

The last death from covid19 was recorded on April 6. It was reported that that patient also suffered from pre-existing medical conditions.

The release also denied rumours that there had been five deaths at the Caura Hospital on Thursday, and urged the public to follow information only from the ministries of health and communications.

The number of active cases stands at 277. A total of 78 cases were recorded on Wednesday alone, with 43 cases reported in the Ministry of Health's 10 am update and 35 cases in its 6 pm update.

The total number of cases is 426, of whom139 patients have been discharged. The number of samples sent to CARPHA and the UWI testing sites is 12,937.

It was also announced on Friday that the Prime Minister would host a media conference on Saturday afternoon. While it was not reported what would be announced at the conference, it is believed that additional measures to control the spread of the virus will be announced.