Fiji reported 107 new coronavirus cases and 21 deaths overnight including 14 with COVID and seven from COVID, of which six were unvaccinated and one, a 54-year-old woman had received both doses.
The fully vaxxed woman from Lautoka died three days ago, becoming the sixth fully vaccinated person in the country to die from COVID-19.
In their latest update, the Ministry of Health said although she was fully vaccinated, having received the first dose in early May and the second on 8 July, the woman had underlying medical conditions and background of poor general health.
“She presented to the Kamikamica Health Center with a two-day history of generalised body weakness and gastrointestinal symptoms that began on 19 September. She was retrieved by a medical team and transferred to the Lautoka Hospital on the same day of her presentation (21/09. Sadly, she died nine days after admission (30/09).
“These pre-existing conditions would have toned down her ability to mount a good vaccine-induced immune response and thus impair her ability to fully benefit from the protective effects of the vaccine. The Ministry of Health and Medical Services advises that we all need to continue practicing strict COVID-19 safety measures to protect our vulnerable family members, irrespective of vaccination status.”
The total number of people to have died from COVID-19 have increased to 631 since March 2020 or 629 since April this year whilst those who died with COVID-19 stands at 429.
Vaccination numbers have also picked up, to 592,628 or 95.9 per cent of the eligible target population for first dose coverage and 454,474 have gone on to receive their second dose, equating to 73.5 per cent.
With 68 new recoveries and having accounted for the deaths, total active cases in the country stands at 12,859. There have been 51,060 cases during the outbreak that started in April 2021 or 51,130 since the first case was reported in March 2020.
COVID-19 Deaths
The seven deaths were reported for the period from 8 July and 30 September.
Five deaths were reported from the central division and two deaths were reported from the western division.
- 28 September
- Male, 59, Rakiraki
- Unvaccinated
- Presented to Rakiraki with severe respiratory distress. He died on the same day
- 12 September
- Female, 71, Navua
- Unvaccinated
- Presented to Navua Hospital in severe respiratory distress. She was retrieved and taken to CWM Hospital where she died one day after admission.
- 15 July
- Female, 75, Waila
- Unvaccinated
- Died at home
- 9 July
- Female, 95, Suva
- Unvaccinated
- Died at home
- Male, 76, Suva
- Unvaccinated
- Died at home
- Female, 95, Suva
- 8 July
- Male, 84, Suva
- Unvaccinated
- Died at home
As of 26 September, the national 7 days rolling average of COVID-19 deaths per day is 0.4. The 7 days rolling average for COVID-19 deaths per day in the central division is 0.1 and 0.3 in the western division.
Testing Update
A total of 370,476 samples have been tested since this outbreak started in April 2021, with 413,337 tested since testing began in March 2020. 1,295 tests have been reported for 30 September. The 7-day daily test average is 1,088 tests per day or 1.2 tests per 1,000 population. Weekly testing is at 9.7 tests per 1000 population, which remains above the WHO recommended level of 4 tests per 1000 population per week. The national 7-day average daily test positivity is 7.6%, which is on a downward trend, but it still is indicating a high level of community transmission.
