8 More Utahns Die Of COVID-19; 3,489 Positive Cases Reported

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Department of Health has issued a report saying 8 more Utahns have died of COVID-19, and 3,489 cases of the virus have been confirmed over the last two days.

Officials said 2,598 of the cases would have been reported on Dec. 25, but were not released on Christmas Day. The remaining 991 cases were attributed to positive tests since Friday.

They said 16,924 vaccines have been administered since they first became available.

The latest numbers were released around 11:50 a.m. Saturday.

Testing

Health officials reported a total of 1,690,466 residents have been tested for the novel coronavirus – an increase of 12,956 of the total reported since Thursday.

Officials further clarified that 8,879 of those cases would have been reported Friday, and 4,077 would be reported for Saturday.

Of those, a total of 264,078 have tested positive for the virus – an increase of 2,408 cases since Friday and 991 since Saturday. It was an increase of 15,108 in the last week.

The rolling seven-day average for positive tests was 2,153 per day – down 553 since last Saturday. The rolling seven-day average for percent of positive laboratory tests was 24.0 percent.

Vaccinations

The vaccine has been administered to 16,924 people.

Vaccinations in the state’s first distribution phase were going to “healthcare personnel who work in high-risk environments from the hospitals in the state that provide care to the highest number of COVID-19 patients.”

The number of vaccines ordered by the state and approved by the federal government and shipped was not available.

Hospitalizations

The health department reported 481 people were being treated for COVID-19 in Utah hospitals. Total hospitalizations since the pandemic began was 10,522 people – an increase of 554 people in the last week.

Utah officials said 81.7 percent of the 536 ICU beds across the state were full. Of those, 172 were being used by patients confirmed to have COVID-19. The remaining ICU beds were used by patients with other critical medical conditions.

Hospital officials have said, in addition to the beds nearing capacity, there was staffing for around 85 percent of those beds.

Deaths

There have been 1,212 deaths in the state, with the addition of 8 Utahns over the last two days.

The latest COVID-19 deaths included four women and four men. All but two were over the age of 65.

There have been 1,212 total deaths of residents from the disease in the Beehive State since the pandemic began – and increase of 64 in the last week.

Box Elder County

The deaths include a Box Elder County man who was between the ages of 45 to 54 and hospitalized when he died.

Officials with the Bear River Health Department have reported 44 deaths in the district and 25 in Box Elder County. The health district also includes Cache and Rich counties.

Davis County

A Davis County woman between the ages of 65 to 84 was hospitalized when she died after contracting the virus.

The county has reported 81 COVID-19 deaths since the beginning of the outbreak.

Millard County

A woman from Millard County between the ages of 65 to 84, was hospitalized at time of her death. She was the second person in the county to die of COVID-19.

Officials with the Central Utah Public Health Department reported 31 deaths in the district. The district also covered Juab, Piute, Sanpete, Sevier, and Wayne counties.

Salt Lake County

One additional Salt Lake County resident has died of COVID-19. Officials said the woman was between the ages of 45 to 64 and hospitalized when she died.

There have been a total of 532 coronavirus-related deaths in the county – 28 in the last week.

Utah County

Health officials also reported the death of a Utah County man between the ages of 65 to 84. He was hospitalized when he died.

The county has reported 204 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic – 11 in the last seven days.

Washington County

A woman from Washington County who was over the age of 85 was hospitalized at the time of her death.

Officials reported a total of 106 deaths in the county, and 131 in the area covered by the Southwest Utah Health Department, which also includes Iron, Kane, Beaver, and Garfield counties.

Weber County

Two men were hospitalized when they died in Weber County. One was between the ages of 65 to 84 and the other was older than age 85.

Their deaths bring the total in the county to 92. Officials with the Weber-Morgan Health Department have reported 99 COVID-19 deaths in their area.

National/Worldwide Numbers

There have been just under 18.8 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United States. Over 330,000 Americans have died of the disease, according to numbers compiled by the Coronavirus Resource Center at John Hopkins University.

There has been an increase of 1.3 million cases and 15,000 deaths in just the last seven days.

Across the globe there have been over 80 million cases and 1,754,091 deaths.

With just 4 percent of the worldwide population, the United States has accounted for 23.5 percent of the global cases and 18.9 percent of the deaths since the pandemic began.

The first US case was confirmed on January 21, 2020. The number of new cases in the nation has skyrocketed in November, with a spike significantly higher than any other country.

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Coronavirus Resources

Have you or a family member been affected by coronavirus issues in Utah? KSL wants to hear from you. Contact KSL by emailing social@ksl.com.

What is COVID-19? Here’s What You Need To Know To Stay Healthy: ksltv.com/432037/what-is-covid-19/

Latest coronavirus stories from KSL can be found at ksltv.com/coronavirus/.

Where in the world has the coronavirus already appeared? See the map: ksltv.com/?p=432035

Your Life Your Health: How can parents prepare their home, children against coronavirus: ksltv.com/?p=432060

How do I prevent it?

The CDC has some simple recommendations, most of which are the same for preventing other respiratory illnesses or the flu:

• Avoid close contact with people who may be sick
• Avoid touching your face
• Stay home when you are sick
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and then throw the tissue in the trash
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. Always wash your hands with soap and water if your hands are visibly dirty.
• If soap and water is not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

The CDC does not recommend wearing a facemask respirator to protect yourself from coronavirus unless a healthcare professional recommends it.