Five additional COVID-19 deaths were recorded in St Vincent and the Grenadines on Friday October 8, and Saturday  October 9, 2021, a release from the National Emergency Management Organization said. The fatalities were three women and two men who ranged in age from 34  to 94 years old.

“A 94-year-old male who tested positive for COVID-19 on admission to the  COVID ward at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital died on October 8th, 2021, of COVID-19  pneumonia. The second patient is a 60-year-old female who tested positive for COVID-19 on  September 27th, 2021, died on October 8th, 2021, while admitted to the COVID-19 ward at the  Milton Cato Memorial Hospital. The third patient is a 34-year-old female who tested positive for COVID-19 on September 22, 2021 and died on October 8th, 2021. The fourth patient is a 70-year old female with pre-existing conditions who tested positive for COVID-19 on admission to the  COVID-19 ward at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital on October 4th, 2021 and died of a COVID 19 pneumonia on October 8th, 2021. The fifth patient is a 77-year-old male who tested positive for  COVID-19 on October 5th, 2021 and died at home with complications of COVID-19 on October 9th, 2021. All the patients were unvaccinated. Their deaths bring the death toll from COVID-19 to  thirty-eight (38),” the release said. 

One hundred and thirty-one new COVID-19 positive cases were reported from six hundred and  fifty-eight (658) samples processed on Tuesday October 5th, 2021, resulting in a positivity of 20%.  All cases are contacts of known positive cases and persons seeking care. 

There are currently fifteen (15) patients admitted for COVID-19 at the Argyle Isolation Facility.  Fourteen (14) are unvaccinated and one (1) patient is partially vaccinated. Thirty-six (36) patients  are admitted to the COVID-19 wards at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital. Thirty-four (34)  patients are unvaccinated, one (1) patient is fully vaccinated, and one (1) patient is partially  vaccinated.  

One hundred and sixty-one (161) new recoveries were noted over the reporting period. One  thousand two hundred and eighty-six (1286) cases are currently active and thirty-eight (38) persons  with COVID-19 have died. Four thousand and ninety-six (4096) cases of COVID-19 and two  thousand, six hundred and ninety-three (2693) recoveries have been recorded in St. Vincent and  the Grenadines since March 2020.  

The established public health interventions of detection, testing and quarantining or isolation  continue aimed at containing and suppressing this current major outbreak. The increased testing  associated with these public health interventions coupled with the large number of requests for exit  screens from travelers leaving St. Vincent and the Grenadines has resulted in a significant backlog  of samples awaiting PCR processing at the Molecular Lab Unit (MLU). This back log, estimated  to be 800 samples, should be cleared in 48 hours. 

The strict enforcement of and compliance with all protocols and recommendations are required by  everyone if the current outbreak, powered by the highly contagious and deadlier Delta and Gamma  variants of the (SARS-CoV-2) virus which causes COVID-19, is to be contained. The correct and  consistent use of masks, avoidance of crowds, physical distancing, proper hand sanitizing and  immunization with available vaccines have all been proven to significantly reduce the risk of being  infected, getting sick and or dying from the COVID-19 virus.