FIFTH WAVE: The Bahamas enters another wave of COVID-19

FIFTH WAVE: The Bahamas enters another wave of COVID-19
[FILE PHOTO]

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — “We are in another wave of COVID,” Director of the National HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Programme Dr Nikkiah Forbes confirmed today.

There has been a steady rise in infection in recent days.

The rate of cases has more than tripled in the last couple of months.

Director of the National HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Programme Dr Nikkiah Forbes

“We’re seeing an increase in cases and so, absolutely we are in a wave of COVID-19,” she said when contacted.

“We can expect that this is how COVID is going to behave: that there is going to be periods where it goes up in a wave and then it’s going to settle back down.”

Forbes pointed out that management of the wave and uptake of vaccinations will prove key.

She also noted that hospitalizations have been largely comprised of individuals seeking care for other services and discovering they have COVID upon admission.

The Bahamas recorded 155 new cases over the weekend.

There were 29 new infections on Sunday 62 on Saturday and 64 on Friday.

Of the total infections, 72 cases were imported.

Total cases since the onset of the pandemic stand at 34,303.

A total of 661 cases remain active.

There were 10 hospitalized cases on Sunday, though none of them were in Intensive Care Units.

As of Saturday, 166,552 people in The Bahamas had been fully vaccinated.

About Royston Jones Jr.

Royston Jones Jr. is a senior digital reporter and occasional TV news anchor at Eyewitness News. Since joining Eyewitness News as a digital reporter in 2018, he has done both digital and broadcast reporting, notably providing the electoral analysis for Eyewitness News’ inaugural election night coverage, “Decision Now 2021”.