By LEANDRA ROLLE
Tribune Staff Reporter
lrolle@tribunemedia.net
COVID-19 related deaths have climbed by two to 254, with officials reporting that the country’s youngest victim is a five-month-old girl who died from the virus on June 26.
A 78-year-old New Providence woman who died on July 2 has also added to the nation’s COVID-19 death count.
With COVID-19 numbers and hospital related cases continuing to climb, former Health Minister Dr Duane Sands says it’s very likely the Delta variant could be present in the country and is “probably part of the reason” why local hospitalisations have increased.
Dr Sands spoke after the country recorded 100 new cases over the holiday weekend, pushing the nation’s overall tally to 13,165 as of Saturday.
According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Health, 51 new infections were confirmed on Saturday, 49 on Friday, 41 on Thursday, 59 on Wednesday, 23 on Tuesday, 53 on Monday and eight on Sunday, July 4, for a total of 284 last week. The week prior saw 295 cases.
Fifty-eight people are currently said to be in hospital sick with the virus, with four in the intensive unit.
Thirty deaths are currently under investigation.
Health officials would not comment on or provide more details on the infant’s death when contacted yesterday.
However, Dr Sands said the baby’s death shows that COVID-19 does not discriminate and can affect anyone.
This, he added, is why it’s important that Bahamians must not become relaxed about the current public health measures despite feeling COVID-19 fatigue.
He said: “If we take nothing away from her death, we should take away the fact that COVID does not discriminate. It does not discriminate on the basis of social economic status. It doesn’t discriminate against the colour of your skin or whatever island you live on and so we all need to be taking this thing seriously. Yes, we’re tired of COVID. Yes, we’re sick and tired of wearing masks or not being able to interact freely but we’re not out of the woods yet and no country is.”
Speaking generally about climbing case numbers and hospital cases, Dr Sands called the numbers disappointing and said it further shows that the country is nowhere out of the woods yet.
He added the COVID-19 situation remains a fluid one and again stressed that things can change, pointing to the emergence of new virus strains.
“It seemed like a few weeks ago that the numbers were coming down and now over the last probably week or so, the numbers seemed to be going back up again,” Dr Sands told The Tribune yesterday. “So, this is a little bit disappointing that we’re seeing these kinds of challenges with the COVID numbers as well as COVID deaths and hospitalisations and I think it speaks to the ever-changing dynamic of this virus with the emergence of these different variants.
“We now know that we have a Delta variant. We have a Lambda variant and who knows what else is going to pop up so there is so much that is unfolding as it relates to COVID-19.”
More than 90 countries have since detected the Delta strain, which is said to be quickly becoming the dominant strain in many nations.
Dr Sands said while there has been no confirmation that the strain is present in the Bahamas, it does not mean that the mutation is not already here.
In fact, Dr Sands said he believes the variant’s presence in the Bahamas is what’s partly contributing towards some of the nation’s problems, noting a worrisome uptick in hospital admissions among younger people.
Local health officials have already said the uptick in virus numbers has left Princess Margaret Hospital operating at full capacity.
Yesterday, Dr Sands said: “We know that the Delta variant is becoming the predominant variant in the United States. We know that it’s becoming the predominant variant in a number of countries and so even though we have no conclusive data that confirms the Delta variant is causing a problem in the Bahamas, I don’t think it’s a reckless or irresponsible speculation to suggest that the Delta variant is now in the Bahamas.
“I think as a matter of fact, it is probably part of the reason why we’ve seen an uptick in the number of cases presenting to the various emergency rooms and why we are seeing younger people with COVID-19 requiring hospitalisations. You have people in their 20s, 30s being hospitalised and I think we need to recognise that what is going on worldwide might be happening here in the Bahamas.”
Asked about his recommendations to get cases under control in the country, the former health minister said more people need to be vaccinated and added there needs to be a national effort to educate Bahamians about both the vaccine and public health measures.
“We can’t get tired,” Dr Sands said. “We just have to keep it up and we need to redouble our efforts and repeat what we’ve said over and over and when we get tired, repeat it again trying to use the creative community to help us with ads and so forth.”
The Bahamas administered 97,992 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to date.
According to health officials, 60,303 have received their first shot, while 37,689 people have been fully vaccinated.
Comments
Sickened 3 years, 4 months ago
When is Pfizer going to be available?
ohdrap4 3 years, 4 months ago
To 5 month old babies?
John 3 years, 4 months ago
The Delta variant seems to move quickly over a population and then disappear. Is this signaling an end to the Covid-19 virus pandemic ? Some say it is the beginning of a fourth wave. Pfizer says it wants to give a third booster shot. The CDC and FDA says ‘hold accountable n, not so fast, we will be the only nes making that decision in due time. Israel, who had brought its numbers closer to zero than ever since the pandemic began is attempting to vaccinate all its citizens with a ‘third Jab’ as an extra precaution against the Delta variant. Johnson and Johnson says no major concern about the 100 plus patients who developed heart complications a few weeks after taking the vaccine. . QUOTE:‘ Predictably, the pandemic wore on, stretching into a third deadly wave that lasted through the spring of 1919, with a fourth wave hitting in the winter of 1920. Some officials blamed the resurgence on careless Americans. Others downplayed the new cases or turned their attention to more routine public health matters, including other diseases, restaurant inspections and sanitation. Despite the persistence of the pandemic, influenza quickly became old news. Once a regular feature of front pages, reportage rapidly dwindled to small, sporadic clippings buried in the backs of the nation’s newspapers. The nation carried on, inured to the toll the pandemic had taken and the deaths yet to come. People were largely unwilling to return to socially and economically disruptive public health measures. No matter the era, aspects of daily life go on even during a pandemic.‘
Economist 3 years, 4 months ago
" Israel, who had brought its numbers closer to zero than ever since the pandemic began is attempting to vaccinate all its citizens with a ‘third Jab’ as an extra precaution against the Delta variant."
Not true, only those with a compromised immune system.
"Israel’s Health Ministry said a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine would be offered to immunocompromised individuals, such as those who have undergone organ transplants. The step follows evidence that the additional shot might increase such patients’ antibody counts, according to a Health Ministry letter sent to Israeli healthcare providers."
carltonr61 3 years, 4 months ago
https://www.rt.com/russia/529012-sputni…
Was the parent also Covid posative or did the unfortunate child get it from thin air. Is this the poster moment to introduce all school kids to be vaccinated. Will our Covid leaders be seen crying over a small tomb but no tears for the persons who died from the vaccines.
DWW 3 years, 4 months ago
russian hackers again? dude has zero credibility around here
carltonr61 3 years, 4 months ago
Just take a test vaccine on a belief is like buying numbers and gambling. Why does the doctor leave out all scientific evidence and data. Universally it was accepted as science that obesity was the number one risk. Also HBP and diabetes. The makers of AZ recommend it's use only for those over 40 or at risk groups. Even the FDA and WHO have problems backing the big pharma push for children and a third shot without first admitting the Vax failed or will fail in a messed up experiament to rush ten years of testing into one month then hereafter let's just wait and see who all die, have side effects etc. And to mandate that each human become a test rat is not medicine or Godly.
carltonr61 3 years, 4 months ago
Someone needs to count the times this story becomes the lead story for the Covid masters of fear and control. So little is said here in The Bahamas about the dangers to healthy children and adults posed by side effects of vaccines. In healthy children and adults with Covid posative you have 0.0000005% chance of side effects or death. For healthy persons vaccinated your risk of side effects and death are 0.0008%.
DWW 3 years, 4 months ago
BS
TalRussell 3 years, 4 months ago
The Covid-19 deaded tally is even worse than It looks. Many of those excess deaded, aren't accounted for in the official arithmetic used in the tallying of Covid's deaded - which put the all that is deaded be climbing south by double+ the officially tallied 254 deaded, yes?
carltonr61 3 years, 4 months ago
UK is vacvinated 87%. Israel the poster child of vaccinations is forced to begin a third shot and has disbanded its green pass. The world is showing that vaccines alone are not the answer anywhere. The promised freedom for UK is on 21July but while not admitting vaccine failure there many are calling not to end restrictions. We are in worst condition after vaccinations than last year without them. According to Israel, USA and Europe the vaccinated zombies are passing the virus on without the use of face mask. Holding onto sanitary mandate should be more emphasized as equal for all. But the QRCode mandate as an outcome of Covid must go ahead for each human on Earth while they know even the vaccinated do get Covid and spread it that fact is no longer important. QR will go on.
John 3 years, 4 months ago
COVID viruses naturally disappear after infecting a percentage af the earth’s population and after making several mutations in attempts to survive and infect additional people. To say that over a dozen companies can come up with extremely high efficacy vaccines that are even effective against newer strains of this virus in such a short period of time is definitely a trip through fairytale land, the greatest motivator behind the vaccine drive is MONEY!
proudloudandfnm 3 years, 4 months ago
So sad. I can't imagine what the family is going thru. Deepest sympathies, sincere condolences to the family.
TalRussell 3 years, 4 months ago
@Comrade Proud, I join with you extending deepest sympathies, sincere condolences to the family. Our oldest sibling deaded at three months. Was a very long time ago in human years but never has more than days passes by without my remembering our elder sibling that none siblings got to earthly meet. I do believe communication lines open up after finally arriving at the intended travel destination,**yes?
tribanon 3 years, 4 months ago
Is Sands really saying that all of the tests done in our public and private sector labs to date have been unable to determine which variants are present in our country?! If so, are we using Communist China made testing supplies provided free of charge by the CCP controlled WHO and PAHO?
Does this mean medical doctors have been treating patients without knowing whether they had one or more pre-existing medical conditions and without knowing the extent to which such conditions may have been exacerbated by the Wuhan virus?
Have additional details been withheld by health officials because they don't want the public to know the infant in question was born with one or more serious pre-existing medical conditions?
But was the infant's death caused by one or more serious pre-existing medical conditions from the time of birth that were exacerbated by the Wuhan virus?
Other pre-existing medical conditions neglected by Bahamians as a result of the pandemic, combined with the severity of the COVID-19 fatigue factor, are probably killing as many Bahamians as the Wuhan virus itself.
Talk about a truly misleading statement by Sands! Wuhan virus deaths around the world have been heavily skewed towards persons of lower socio-economic standing. Mainly because these persons are much less likely to have good nutritional diets, or access to affordable healthcare of a preventative nature.
tribanon 3 years, 4 months ago
But pray tell Dr. Sands, are the vaccinated among us becoming the ideal human hosts for the creation of stronger variants by mutation?
Yup. And for all we know, the very sinister and evil military arm of the Communist Chinese Party may be in the process of creating COVID-666 for unleashing on the world.
All of the ongoing costly lab testing of specimens collected here in The Bahamas seems to be telling us very little.
Many of us are concerned that government seems to be more interested in controlling the people than controlling the Wuhan virus.
After all, there can be no easing up now with so much 'Ka-ching.....Ka-ching.....Ka-ching' at stake for those enjoying enormous windfall profits from this pandemic.
ThisIsOurs 3 years, 4 months ago
"seemed like a few weeks ago that the numbers were coming down and now over the last probably week or so, the numbers seemed to be going back up again,” Dr Sands told The Tribune yesterday. “So, this is a little bit disappointing .."
are we deliberately ignoring the fact that cases started rising in direct correlation to the massive influx of homeporting tourists? I have this on mo better authority than the tourism minister. Days before their arrival he said "our numbers are going down"
tribanon 3 years, 4 months ago
Good point.
joeblow 3 years, 4 months ago
... does this government have the capacity to accurately, definitively and objectively distinguish death FROM COVID from death WITH COVID?
Lknowles 3 years, 4 months ago
Everyone that wasnt murdered or dies from old age now they are going to blame it on covid 19 all because they want to make this vaccine mandatory but they could shove that needle up minnis ass look how many people died from taking that shit hell no.....
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