COVID third wave: Edo records seven deaths, 294 cases in five weeks

The Edo government says the state has recorded seven deaths and 294 cases, amid the third wave of the pandemic.

Andrew Obi, the state incident manager, disclosed this on Thursday after a virtual meeting of the COVID-19 taskforce, chaired by Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo.

According to Obi, Edo has collected 7,095 samples and recorded 294 confirmed cases and 100 recoveries since July 17, 2021, when the state announced that it was witnessing a third wave of infections.

He added that there is a surge in the number of COVID-related deaths and infections in the state, noting that unvaccinated persons account for 100 percent of the fatalities and 96 percent of the infections recorded in the third wave.

“Edo state, in the last 24 hours, recorded two more COVID-19-related deaths, bringing the total number of deaths recorded in the third wave of the pandemic to seven,” he said.

“We also confirmed 54 new cases from the 354 samples collected within the 24-hour timeframe, with five recoveries and 187 active cases that are being managed at various treatment and isolation centres within the state.

“While 100 percent of the deaths recorded in the state are unvaccinated persons, 96 percent of infections in the state are people who were never vaccinated against the deadly virus. This reiterates the need for everyone to get inoculated as the vaccines provide significant protection against the virus.”

Obi urged residents of the state to get vaccinated against the virus, adding that the second phase of vaccination has begun across the LGAs.

“We charge all residents who have been administered with the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine to come out for the second dose to get full protection against the virus, while others who have not been vaccinated are encouraged to come out and get the vaccination,” he said.

“The vaccines are safe, free and effective.”