Navajo Nation Reports Two More COVID-19 Deaths, 166 New Cases
May 2, 2020, 10:55 AM | Updated: Jul 13, 2023, 2:44 pm
FILE (Photo by Andrew Milligan-WPA Pool/Getty Images)
(Photo by Andrew Milligan-WPA Pool/Getty Images)
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — The Navajo Nation has reported two more deaths related to COVID-19 and 166 new cases.
As of numbers released Friday, there were a total of 2,307 positive cases and 73 deaths on the reservation.
Officials said a total of 13,427 people have been tested.
Gallup Mayor Louis Bonaguidi and New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham enacted temporary restrictions in New Mexico to slow the spread of COVID-19, ordering a lockdown from noon Friday to noon Monday.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said he supports the restrictions, and is hopeful that it will help prevent Navajo people from traveling to the border town.
The order comes as the Navajo Nation enters another 57-hour weekend curfew, requiring all residents to remain home. Essential workers — including first responders, and those who find themselves in emergencies — are allowed to travel outside their homes.
Police have been set up at different road checkpoints to issue citations to violators.
“We don’t want any more more of our people getting the virus and we don’t want any more grieving families,” said Vice President Myron Lizer. “Please think of others, think of the families who have lost their sons, daughters, parents, and grandparents to COVID-19.”
President Nez said citizens need to be doing a better job as the number of cases and deaths continue to rise.
“Last week, we began to see a slight flattening of the curve, but so many people continue to travel to border towns and now we’re seeing spikes in new cases again. We, as citizens of the Navajo Nation, need to do a better job and hold one another accountable,” said Nez. “Let’s be strong and keep fighting together by staying home and avoiding hotshot areas.”
The Navajo Reservation spans the Four Corners area that includes part of southeastern Utah. Here’s a county by county breakdown of reported coronavirus cases on the reservation:
- San Juan County, UT: 42
- McKinley County, NM: 617
- Apache County, AZ: 538
- Navajo County, AZ: 513
- Coconino County, AZ: 286
- San Juan County, NM: 245
- Socorro County, NM: 23
- Cibola County, NM: 22
- Sandoval County, NM: 21
