Minister of Health Renward Wells speaks on Friday.
By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Senior Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
HEALTH officials are investigating three to four potential COVID-19 deaths as the country recorded 69 confirmed cases of the virus on Friday, a new record.
There are now 830 confirmed cases of the virus, 719 of which are active and 30 of which are hospitalized.
There have been three new recoveries for a total of 93.
Health Minister Renward Wells said during Friday’s Ministry of Health press conference: “With increasing hospitalisation the country must brace itself to experience more deaths from COVID-19.”
Chief Medical Officer Dr Pearl McMillan also revealed that 30 healthcare workers have tested positive for the virus in the second wave so far.
“Our acute care units as well as hospital beds are about to exceed capacity,” she said.
She also said the number of new confirmed cases has declined by 40 percent this week compared to last week.
“We stress a cautious optimism as we look at that, what appears to be a decrease as the coming week will reveal a more instructive picture,” she said.
The National Reference Laboratory is averaging 150 COVID-19 tests per day but there are three times that number of samples being collected.
“Such demand is stressing our capacities in the lab,” Dr McMillan said.
Meanwhile, a new Emergency Powers Order released Friday evening indicated that grocery stores will now be opened to the general public on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7am to 7pm.
On Abaco, gas stations will be opened between 6am and 7pm for refuelling generators; non-governmental organisations will be opened for the production and provision of water and food distribution during that time; and restaurants using takeaway and curbside services will be opened from Monday to Friday between 6am to 7pm.
Officials said Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis will give an update on Sunday on bed capacity in the country.
Comments
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
30 in hospital. That's the number to watch.
TalRussell 4 years, 3 months ago
Funeral Homes according to the Central Authority CA, must be in a depressed financial recession?
The one the CA, doesn't want to be watched is the Non-COVID Related Deaths. Has wonder why so stuck... unstuck now for like 14 days at but 2? Nod Once for Yeah, Twice for No?
Entrepreneur 4 years, 3 months ago
The percentage of positive tests of the total number of tests taken is actually down from a few days ago. Stay the course.
Amused 4 years, 3 months ago
The reporters imo really started getting on their nerves when some of those questions were asked. Sadly to say all they no is lockdown baby lockdown baby. Lets think outside the box ppl
ohdrap4 4 years, 3 months ago
"Thank you for your question. X from the hospital authority will answer."
They continued to pass the baton.
They need to hire TalRussel to answer for them.
Their terrified faces were amusing tho. Not being politicians , they do not know how to avoid a yellow face.
DDK 4 years, 3 months ago
Hopefully these dimwit emergency powers people will allow wash houses to reopen in Abaco as many hundreds are still without water, electricity, washing machines and actually their own houses, while in Nassau bakeries are happily baking away the beloved and oh so healthy white bread! Quite amazing what makes these so-called emergency powers tick. Perhaps Minnis should go to Church on Sunday evenings and just GET OVER HIMSELF!
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
I would like to remark that 69 daily cases in the Bahamas are equivalent to roughly 70.000 daily cases in the US, taken into account the population size. So, we have same prevalence now as the US. In conclusion it also makes absolutely no sense to close the border to the US.
Porcupine 4 years, 3 months ago
No sense to whom? A person who uses logic, or the vast majority of both populations who just don't get it. There was once an adage about lemmings. Are you the lemming? Or, the one who uses the adage?
alleycat 4 years, 3 months ago
If we hadn’t opened the border to the US we wouldn’t now have the same percentage of cases as the US. We were doing fine until we let the tourists in. And the US has lots of doctors, ventilators, and hospital beds. We don’t.
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
but we did. Now there is same prevalence as in US. Equally it doesn't make sense that Florida closes the borders to Georgia and Alabama, they have similar prevalence. We've lost it already, take it and live with it.
proudloudandfnm 4 years, 3 months ago
Lol. I hope this is a joke. Cause damn. If it aint you got issues...
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
US has about 1000x bigger population than Bahamas. Now how much is 69 * 1000? How many cases are in the US recently? They have somewhere around 50.000- 70.000, daily. That's same prevalence as 70 daily cases in the Bahamas. Now you know how having 70.000 cases in the US feels like
DDK 4 years, 3 months ago
I still don't think these emergency powers freaks get it. Much of the population in Abaco has no refrigeration, therefore panic induced shopping will still prevail as shopping every few days, particularly with high summer temperatures, is not a preferred option for all. It must be pointed out that there is an element of the population that probably use shopping as an excuse to get out of the dreaded lockdown. Either way, I think the PM and those who have his ear need to find a new form of entertainment if the Country is to have even a faint hope of survival.
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Wow! Did Renward Wells really think and say that?
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
they only acknowledge the obvious, things they can no longer tuck behind PR. He's saying what he knows we will find out. The people died before he spoke.
rawbahamian 4 years, 3 months ago
Yes the prevalence of Covid infections jumped dramatically after borders were reopened but lets look at this situation logically, 98% of Bahamians have a smart phone and 98% of those smart phones have " WHATSAPP" on it being used everyday along with the "Facebook" app to which the view and post to daily therefore the Bahamians who traveled to the hottest Covid spot (Florida) in the U.S.A. , did so willingly and knowingly for shopping expeditions whilst also importing the COVID 19 VIRUS. This action was a shining example of sheer stupidity and lunacy on the part of the travelers. I don't recall "Da Gummamint" forcing anyone onto aircraft and giving them money to go to Florida to be infected ! Bahamians need to start taking responsibilty for their OWN STUPID THOUGHTLESS DECISIONS and stop blaming " da gummamint " for acting like the beast Jesus Christ rode on the back of into Nazareth !!!
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Stop blaming Bahamians for the seriously flawed and most harmful decision of Minnis and D'Aguilar to prematurely reopen our borders to the deadly Communist China Virus on July 1. Had the borders not been foolishly reopened by these two incompetent buffoons, no Bahamian would have been able to travel to the US, and we would have at least had the non-tourist dependent businesses open and contributing to our economy today. Instead, Minnis and D'Aguilar have both imperiled the lives of the more vulnerable to Covid-19, including the lives of our healthcare workers, while at the same time irreparably harming the non-tourist dependent portion of our economy. Both of them should have long ago resigned.
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
That's where we fail. When you "plan", you put in contingencies for the people who are going to do the wrong thing intentionally or not. It's a known known that people will be careless with their lives and health, they smoke, drink, do drugs, speed, run red lights, have unprotected sex, eat and drink to obesity...why should this be different? We know the people. So if we know them where was the plan?
It appears that our plans only have one success path because everything will always go right.
Hoda 4 years, 3 months ago
How should the Govt stop ppl from eating themselves into obesity, drinking, speeding and having unprotected sex?
ohdrap4 4 years, 3 months ago
All they have to do is take the corned beef off the vat free list. .
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Bingo!
Hoda 4 years, 3 months ago
Okay, only cornbeef leads to obesity. Didnt realize. That list also includes spinach, broccoli, romaine lettuce, apples, oranges, strawberries, beans, peas, almonds. But, i guess you cant 'crack' that.
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Wow! You can afford to buy very high priced items like strawberries, apples, etc.? Most Bahamians today are lucky if they can afford to buy grits.
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
That's a long long long term objective. It would take intention, education, changing of minds and access to services. I guarantee you every overweight person, every single one wants to lose weight. Don't mind the big sexy talk. They just dont have the time or resources or motivation to do so. Motivation is the biggest factor.
Anyway the point was exactly what you're saying even with the best intention, motivation and resources some people will still play Russian roulette with their lives. Since we know that, the question is THEN what do you do.That's contingency planning.
Hoda 4 years, 3 months ago
How should the Govt stop ppl from eating themselves into obesity, drinking, speeding and having unprotected sex?
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
See above responses to your duplicate post.
Hoda 4 years, 3 months ago
Okay, only cornbeef leads to obesity.
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
where is the so glorified capitalism? People want freedom and free market and the free market should satisfy people's needs. Now we have a virus out there but everybody needs a normal life, needs to travel and so on, so why is the damn free capitalist market not satisfying these needs? Where is the competition to offer discount rates ICU beds? "reserve 2 ICU beds today and get 50% discount!". Why is the system so miserably failing on something that minuscule as covid19?!
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
Further bahamasair ran a special. A special can you believe it? Encouraging bahamians to travel. If that's not an example of disjointed government I don't know what is.
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
And we all know, except of course for dumb arse directionless Minnis, that there's nothing between the ears of the Chairman of Bahamasair, namely Tommy Turnquest.
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
I'd like to see the clusters and the infection rate per cluster. I'm assuming all the testing being done is because someone had a contact with an infected individual.
Proguing 4 years, 3 months ago
Fauci warns COVID-19 vaccine may be only partially effective:
"We don't know if it will be 50% or 60%"
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-heal…
Are we going to have lockdowns until everyone is dead of hunger?
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Perhaps, because we're gonna have yo-yo lockdowns for as long as we dumb arse Bahamians allow even dumber arse Minnis to remain the self-annointed most supreme 'incompetent authority'.
TalRussell 4 years, 3 months ago
Ma Comrades, do feel free to challenge me on this but despite my belief that the new health minister will get done to work on his newest cabinet portfolio, If there really is a masterplan afoot to cancel free movement, what is slim to nill probability odds that they'd have disclosed the details of such a secret plan with a Comrade Reward, and Comrade Slim is far away off the out island traveling on the central authority's official business dime. Just couldn't make this stuff up. Just couldn't.** Nod Once for Yeah, Twice for No?
thps 4 years, 3 months ago
"She also said the number of new confirmed cases has declined by 40 percent this week compared to last week."
As of Friday, the week wasn't done. So was she comparing the past 5 days to the previous 7 days? I hope not!
Look at the 7 day numbers, week over week as of Friday Aug 7th
July 25th to the 31st 10 16 40 65 37 24 66
A total of 258 - new confirmed cases
August 1st to 7th 25 49 31 36 36 10 69
a total of 256 new cases
a decline of 2 cases or .08%. Which numbers are she using and did anyone question this?
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Why is everyone so infatuated by the Covid-19 dashboard numbers put out by Johns Hopkins Hospital when it's a given that the inputs to it from our healthcare officials have been manipulated from day one to suit Minnis's political agenda? Even Sands couldn't stomach that fact.
thps 4 years, 3 months ago
I'm just wondering where she got her 40% decline from.
thps 4 years, 3 months ago
I meant "past 6 days".
ThisIsOurs 4 years, 3 months ago
I'm agreeing with @tribanon on this, I think their analysis has always been flawed. I do not understand how they can talk about a decline in positives if they have a backlog. It doesn't make sense to me. In fact I'd say it's nonsense. Because there's a probability that in that batch of contacts you put in, the majority of the positives are still waiting results. Now if you make that statement after youve cleared up the backlog that's a different story.
6 days is way too short a period to start declaring victory
SP 4 years, 3 months ago
S-U-R-P-R-I-S-E We won't be in the "true" surge of infections generated by the border opening and Florida shoppers until August 17th!
What we're seeing now is nothing compared to whats' to come.
ohdrap4 4 years, 3 months ago
Well I was waiting for the vat free school supply sale. But, since he shut it down, I am going to WALMART!!!! 👨🏫
proudloudandfnm 4 years, 3 months ago
You'd still pay VAT... Lol...
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
look at http://www.deagel.com/country/forecast.…
they have planed it long beforehand! Half of the people will die.
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
The most important question is: did the government increase the ICU capacity since the epidemic start? What has been done since Feb-March? Anything? Anything except locking everybody up?
If not, so whats the plan? Hide the head into the sand like the ostrich? Covid will not go away, understand. It is endemic mostly everywhere. You can hide a year, two or three in the sand but it still will be there when you pull your head out. So what now? Lock down for 1-2-3-4 years? Or maybe 10 years? 20 years? Who offers more?
tribanon 4 years, 3 months ago
Look at this way.......Minnis is setting himself up to be your most 'incompetent authority' and supreme ruler for the remainder of his life with the help of the sinister and ruthlessly evil Communist Chinese Party.
TalRussell 4 years, 3 months ago
The best return for the bucks that The Colony spends and invests in tourism its dollars is to take a leading proactive role by contributing heavily towards all thought out under scrutiny things and projects dedicated to preparing and adjusting for a new normal" that must be and remain in place for years. The wearing of Face Coverings has no curve to target for and will remain with us for years ahead.
Mega resort projects, planes, along with mega hotel passenger cruise ships must be forever disregarded.
The free flow-through of visitors to be permitted only by entering via streamlined down to a limited number of manageable ports of entry.
The old days, customs, and ways we've become accustomed to must be permanently done away with, never to be allowed to ever again figure into the new tourism thinking and planning equations.
Nod Once for Yeah it's bloody time that we mean it when we say It's Better in The Colony of 2000 Out Islands, Cays, and Rocks., Twice for no?
rodentos 4 years, 3 months ago
government should start importing soil, otherwise we will starve
ashley14 4 years, 3 months ago
I don't know how this is going to all turn out. I'm just praying for everyone. I miss the good ole days.
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