Sunday 05 / May / 2024
Muscat: One person died nearly every half an hour from COVID-19 between Thursday, July 1 and Saturday, July 3, taking the death toll from the disease in the country to 3,283 people.
50 people passed away from COVID-19 on Thursday, another 48 died on Friday, and 45 people succumbed to the virus on Saturday, which meant the disease took away another 143 lives this weekend. On average, this amounts to nearly 48 people dying every day, or one person every 30 minutes.
54 of the deaths took place in Muscat, 20 of them in Bausher, and a further 16 in Seeb. The capital aside, 42 people died in North Al Batinah.
Additionally, 12 people died in both South Al Batinah and Al Dakhiliyah, 11 in South Al Sharqiyah, five in Buraimi, three in North Al Sharqiyah, and two each in Dhofar and Al Dhahirah. No deaths were reported in Al Wusta and Musandam.
4,662 more people tested positive for the virus over the weekend as well. 1,821 more infections were reported on Thursday, 1,569 on Friday, and 1,272 on Saturday. 171 people have been admitted to hospital over the last 24 hours. This means there are currently 1,589 people undergoing COVID treatment in hospitals across the country, with 532 of them in intensive care. The number of people currently infected with COVID-19 is slightly above 29,000.
The recovery rate, however, outpaced the numbers of new infections over the weekend: 5,886 people recovered from the virus, pushing the total number of recoveries to 242,874, or 88.3 percent of the country’s total caseload.
As part of efforts to bring down case numbers and protect more and more people from the disease, the Ministry of Health has begun vaccinating people aged 18 and above.
Those eligible for the vaccine are requested to register themselves at the earliest, so as to help protect themselves, their families, and those around them, as well as reduce the pressure faced by doctors and other healthcare workers in terms of treating COVID-infected patients.
“We would like to inform you that only the first dose of the vaccine is currently being provided to the target groups of people aged 18 and above, as part of the expanded national campaign for immunisation against COVID-19,” said a statement from the Directorate General of Health Services in Al Dhahirah, advising people over when they can expect to be fully vaccinated.
Pregnant women have also been included among the target groups of people who can now be vaccinated, with health services across the country encouraging those eligible to also sign up for their vaccine jabs.
“All pregnant women who wish to receive the vaccination against COVID-19, and have reached the fourth month of their pregnancy (are at a gestational age of 13 weeks and above) can book an advance appointment, which will take place in the vaccination centres in the governorate,” said a notice from the DG of Health Services in North Al Sharqiyah.
The Ministry of Health has also asked people to not listen to rumours and false information regarding vaccines and their eligibility, after many posts concerning the same were circulated on social media.
To help stop the spread of COVID-19, people are advised to adhere to the precautions concerning COVID-19, which include avoiding large scale gatherings and meeting in large numbers, wearing a mask, maintaining a physical distance of at least two metres from each other, and regularly washing one’s hands with soap or hand sanitiser.
People are also reminded that they shouldn’t touch their face, nose, mouth, and eyes often, must refrain from leaving their home unless necessary, are to follow healthy habits when sneezing/coughing, and must follow all the protocols concerning isolation, if they display symptoms or have been in touch with people currently infected with the disease.
