Alaska sets another daily record with 231 new virus cases

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Alaska health officials have said the state experienced a record number of newly confirmed coronavirus cases on Sunday, with 231.

It is the first day the state has experienced more than 200 new confirmed cases in a day.

The state Department of Health and Social Services said 186 of the new cases involved Alaska residents and 45 involved non-residents, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

There are currently 35 people who are hospitalized with COVID-19 and another eight people who are hospitalized are suspected of having the virus.

Alaska has reported 3,102 cases of COVID-19 statewide and 950 people have recovered from the virus.

The state said it has conducted over 207,000 tests since the beginning of the pandemic.

The newly confirmed cases included 154 in Anchorage, the highest daily number of cases for the city so far.

The city’s bars, restaurants and entertainment venues had their capacities restricted on July 22 and limitations were imposed on the number of people allowed to gather in groups. Anchorage has required people to wear masks in certain indoor public settings since June.

Coronavirus outbreaks in the state seafood industry has multiplied since June. In one incident, 98 workers at a seafood processing plant in Seward tested positive.

In another, 85 people aboard a factory fishing vessel docked in the Aleutian Islands tested positive for COVID-19.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. But for some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.