Coronavirus deaths rise to five, 16 new cases confirmed

The Health Ministry announced on Friday that two more people who had contracted coronavirus died, involving a 76-year-old Cypriot woman with underlying health conditions and a 47-year-old Greek national. 16 more coronavirus cases were also confirmed.

The two deaths on Friday brought the toll in the Republic of Cyprus to five, with an average age of 63, while the 16 new confirmed cases raised the total to 162, 85 of which were contacts of other known cases.

“Unfortunately, today in the fight against the pandemic we lost two more people who were being treated at the Limassol Intensive Care Unit,” said Dr Marios Loizou, the Scientific Director of the Nicosia division of the state health services organization.

While the 76-year-old woman suffered from underlying health conditions, the 47-year-old did not.

Announcing the new confirmed cases which amounted to 16 on Friday, Leontios Kostrikis, Professor of Molecular Virology at the Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, said that one had returned from a European country, nine were tested after coming in contact with other known cases, one was confirmed in the British Bases (which now hosts four confirmed cases), two were members of a ship’s crew, while the history of three more cases is being investigated.

“Based on current data, the total number of positive cases was 162 including four identified on the bases,” Kostrikis said, noting that many of those that were diagnosed as coronavirus carriers have been cured.

Kostrikis stressed that the two fatalities on Friday highlight the severity of the situation, which he said is still manageable but urged the public to remain at home, providing breathing room for the healthcare system.