Updated COVID-19 tracking graphics will be added to this article today.
According to the state Department of Health and Social Services COVID-19 dashboard, 355 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Alaska on Saturday.
The highest number of new COVID-19 cases has been reported in a single day since the outbreak began in March. The previous highest of 249 cases was reported by the state on October 11.
No new deaths were reported on Saturday. The state has the lowest per capita mortality rate in the country. In all, 68 Alaskans have died from COVID-19.
Across the state as of Saturday, 58 people had been hospitalized with COVID-19. On Friday, 59 people were hospitalized with the illness, a record for the state.
Saturday is also the 31st day in a row that the daily case count is in three digits.
It concluded in a week in which cases continued to rise, especially in rural western Alaska communities. By the end of Friday, 186 residents of the Yukon-Cuskokwim Delta village in Chevrolet – who belong to a community of less than 1,000 people – had tested positive, tribal health officials said.
In new cases, it was not clear how many patients showed symptoms when tested positive. While people can be tested more than once, each case reported by the state health department represents only one person.
Of the 353 new resident cases reported Saturday in the state, 165 were in Anchorage, 18 in Eagle River and two in Chugiak; 16 in Wasila; 13 in Palmer; Two in Houston; Two in a large lake; One in the willow; Nine in Kenai; Four in Homer; Two in Soldotna; One in Nikiski; One in Seward; One in sterling; One in Valdez; One in Healy; 21 in Fairbanks; Five at the North Pole; Five in Juneau; One in Douglas; One in Haynes; One in Skagway; Five at Bethel; 42 in Chevak; And a hopper two.
While communities smaller than 1,000 have not been identified to protect confidentiality, there were 21 resident cases in the Bethel census area; Four in the northwestern Arctic borough; Two in the Kusilwak census area; One of the boroughs of the northern Kenai Peninsula; One in Fairbanks North Star Borough; Nome one in the census field; One of the northern opera boroughs; And one in the Aleustian East Borough.
In addition, two non-narcissists tested positive for COVID-19 in Juneau.
As of Saturday, the state’s test positivity rate was 5.25% above the seven-day rolling average. Health officials say a positive rate of more than 5% indicates the state is not taking adequate testing.
