Azores Situation Report – Saturday 29th May 2021
From our colleague in the Azores
Changes to Restrictive Measures
Half of the municipalities on the island of São Miguel are at high risk of transmitting the new coronavirus, but the Government of the Azores has decided not to apply the most restrictive measures across the island.
“Until now, there was a legal provision that with a certain number of municipalities at a certain risk level, there was a consequence in the measures to be applied on the island. There is no longer any repercussion on the island ”, said Clélio Meneses, the regional secretary for Health and Sports of the Azores.
With 308 new cases per 100 thousand inhabitants, in the last seven days, the municipality of Ribeira Grande joins Northeast (223 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants) and Vila Franca Campo (178 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants) in the list of municipalities. at high risk of transmission, the highest level of five.
The Azorean executive previously determined that whenever 50% of the municipalities on an island with identified community transmission were at high risk, the rest would be subject to the same containment measures, regardless of the numbers they presented.
With the change of this rule, Ponta Delgada, which last week was at very low-risk, is now subject to medium risk measures, Lagoa goes from very low to low risk and Povoação goes from low risk to very low risk, level at which the other municipalities of the Azores are also found.
The village of Rabo de Peixe, in the municipality of Ribeira Grande, will maintain restrictions measures higher than those provided for at the high-risk level.
Between 21st and 27th May, the Azores recorded 188 new cases of infection by SARS-CoV-2, which causes the covid-19 disease, 35 more cases than in the previous week, the majority recorded on the island of São Miguel.
The regional health secretary justified, however, the decision not to apply restrictive measures across the island because of the increase in vaccination against covid-19.
122,717 doses of vaccines against covid-19 have been administered to the Azores to 79,081 people (32.1%), of which 43,636 have two doses (17.7%).
“Azoreans aged 60 or more are already vaccinated with at least one dose. We are vaccinating the age group between 55 and 60 years of age and pathologies under 55 years of age. We have a process that is to move forward in an intense way “, he pointed out.
Clélio Meneses nevertheless appealed for compliance with the rules of containment of the pandemic, such as the use of a mask, social distance, hand hygiene or the communication of symptoms.
“We maintain restrictive measures to ensure the defence of health and lives. This week there is an increase in the number of cases. The situation therefore deserves attention. The pandemic is still there. There are cases, there are hospitalizations, there are deaths. Therefore, it is necessary to comply with rules”.
The measures announced today, which will be applied from 00:00 on Saturday, will be in force for two weeks, and not for one week, as usual, but if the number of new cases decreases, the Regional Health Authority will be able to “determine the decrease of risk levels“.
The Azores currently have 285 active cases of infection with the new coronavirus that causes the covid-19 disease, of which 279 in São Miguel, two in Pico, one in Terceira, one in Faial, one in Flores and one in São Jorge.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 5,467 cases of infection have been diagnosed in the region, with 5,020 recoveries and 33 deaths. 79 people left the archipelago without being cured and 50 had proof of previous healing.
The risk level assessment in the Azores is based on a German model, of traffic lights, and is calculated according to the number of new cases of covid-19 per 100 thousand inhabitants in a period of seven days.
There are five levels of risk: very low (fewer than 25 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants), low (between 25 and 49 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants), medium (between 50 and 74 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants), medium high (between 75 and 99 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants) and high (more than 100 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants).
There have been some new infections and recoveries over the last three days.
26th May
21 new positive cases of covid-19 were diagnosed in the Azores, all on the island of São Miguel, following 2,179 tests carried out in the reference laboratories of the Region. One of the new cases concerns a traveler, resident in Rabo de Peixe, with a positive result upon arrival and all the other cases concern community transmission.
There are six new cases in the municipality of Ribeira Grande (three in Rabo de Peixe, two in Ribeira Seca and one in Pico da Pedra). There are 12 new cases in the municipality of Ponta Delgada (eight in Santo António, two in the Fenais of Luz, one in Capelas and one in the Arrifes). In the municipality of Lagoa, there is a new case in the parish of Cabouco and in the municipality of Nordeste, two new cases were diagnosed in the parish of Salga.
28 recoveries were registered. With the recovery of both cases related to the primary local transmission chain on the island of Terceira, in the municipality of Praia da Vitoria, this transmission chain is considered extinct.
27th May
42 new positive cases of covid-19 were diagnosed in the Azores, with 41 on the island of São Miguel and one on the island of Flores following 2,255 tests carried out in the reference laboratories of the Region.
There are 21 new cases in the municipality of Ribeira Grande: two in Ribeirinha, 13 in Rabo de Peixe, two in Santa Bárbara, two in Ribeira Seca and two in the Lomba de São Pedro. The municipality of Ponta Delgada registers 12 new cases: three in São Vincente Ferreira, two in Arrifes, two in Fenais da Luz, and the parishes of Capelas, São Roque, São José, Fajã de Baixo and Sete Cidades have one case each. The municipality of Vila Franca do Campo has six new cases: five in Ponta Garça and one in São Pedro. There is one new case in the municipality of Lagoa, in the parish of Cabouco and the municipality of Nordeste also registers a new case in the parish of Achadinha. The case registered on the island of Flores is allocated to the parish of Fajã Grande in the municipality of Lajes das Flores.
There were 14 recoveries.
28th May
19 new positive cases of covid-19 were diagnosed in the Azores, all on the island of São Miguel, following 3,031 tests carried out in the reference laboratories of the Region and three in independent laboratories.
There has been a total of 26 recoveries.
The positive case identified yesterday in the parish of Fajã Grande, municipality of Lajes das Flores, provided documentation demonstrating a previous infection and recovery, and therefore is no longer considered an active case in the Azores.
During the epidemiological investigation, a positive case initially allocated to the parish of Rosto de Cão (São Roque), municipality of Ponta Delgada, is now reported to the parish of Rabo de Peixe, municipality of Ribeira Grande.
As of today, ten patients are in hospital, all at the Divino Espírito Santo Hospital in Ponta Delgada (none in intensive care).
The Archipelago currently has 277 active positive cases: 272 on the island of São Miguel, two on the island of Pico, one on the island of Terceira, one on the island of Faial and one on the island of São Jorge. There are no active transmission chains and 202 has been extinguished so far. There are 1,320 people under active surveillance.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, 5,486 positive cases of covid-19 have been diagnosed in the Azores and 5,046 people recovered from the disease. There were 33 deaths, 79 people who left the archipelago and 51 cases with history of previous cure.
To date, 499,155 tests have been carried out in the Azores for SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes covid-19 disease. From December 31st, 2020 until the current May 20th, 106,631 doses of covid-19 vaccine were administered in the Azores, corresponding to 68,352 people aged 16 years or more who received the first dose, and 38,278 people who received both doses, under the Regional Vaccination Plan.
At 12:22 local time, Lufthansa’s 320-Neo aircraft, arrived from Frankfurt, Germany, with a capacity for 179 passengers, it landed for the first time at Ponta Delgada airport, on the island of São Miguel.
The decision was taken by the Government Council (PSD / CDS-PP / PPM coalition), which met by videoconference, on May 10th and 12th, and whose decisions were announced this Monday.