Utah reported nearly 300 deaths from COVID-19 in October

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More than 20 months after the first Utahn died from COVID-19, the number of coronavirus deaths in the state continues to rise.

The Utah Department of Health on Monday reported 29 more deaths from COVID-19 over the weekend. As of October, the state reported a total of 294 deaths – 9.1% of the state’s 3,227 total deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Ten of the deaths reported on Monday were Utahns under the age of 65. Among them, three were between 25 and 44 years old and seven between 45 and 64 years old.

At the Capitol on Monday, the Utah Department of Health and the Division of Multicultural Affairs hosted a Dia de los Muertos event and exhibit that recognized the more than 3,000 Utahns who have died from COVID-19. Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a Latin American holiday in which friends and relatives traditionally remember and celebrate deceased loved ones with colorful altars, or ofrendas.

The event aimed to recognize “the collective loss that the Utahns have felt,” according to a press release. Representatives from the Utah Division of Multicultural Affairs as well as the Department of Health, the Utah Pacific Islands Health Coalition and the Utah Division of Indian Affairs spoke at the of the event, as well as the display’s creator, Rocio Mejia, executive director of Una Mana Amiga, a peer mentoring group aimed at helping Hispanic students.

The health ministry also reported 3,179 new cases of coronavirus on Monday over the weekend – 1,615 cases were reported on Friday, 637 on Saturday and 973 on Sunday for an average of nearly 1,058 per day.

The Ministry of Health no longer reports COVID-19 statistics on weekends. The number of tests and cases usually decreases on weekends. (The state removed 46 cases from the total number after additional testing.)

The seven-day moving average for positive tests is 1,506 per day.

An additional 4,586 Utahns have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus in the past three days, bringing the total to 1,754,587 – 53.6% of Utah’s total population.

State intensive care units remain close to capacity. According to the Ministry of Health, 90.6% of all intensive care beds and 92.3% of intensive care beds in large medical centers are occupied. Of all intensive care patients, 44.5% are treated for COVID-19.

Vaccine doses administered in the last three days / total doses administered • 27,759 / 3,759,031.

Fully vaccinated utahns • 1,754,587.

Cases reported in the last three days • 3,179.

Cases among school-aged children • Kindergarten to grade 12 children accounted for 594 of the new cases announced on Monday, or 18.7% of the total. There have been 315 reported cases in children aged 5 to 10 years; 127 cases in children from 11 to 13 years old; and 152 cases in children aged 14-18.

Tests reported in the last three days • 18,094 people were tested for the first time. A total of 41,435 people were tested.

Deaths reported in the last three days • 29.

There have been 13 deaths in Salt Lake County – two men and three women aged 45 to 64; three men and three men 65-84; and a man and a woman aged 85 and over.

Utah County has reported five deaths – a woman aged 45 to 64, as well as three men and a woman aged 65 to 84. And there have been four deaths in Washington County – a woman aged 25 to 44, as well as two women and a man aged 65 to 84.

Two Davis County residents have died – both men aged 65 to 84. Box Elder County has also reported two deaths – a woman aged 25 to 44 and a woman aged 65 to 84.

Three counties each reported a single death – a man aged 85 and over in Cache County; a 25 to 44 year old man in Tooele County; and a man aged 45 to 64 in Uintah County.

Hospitalizations reported in the past three days • 534. This is one less than what was reported on Friday. Of those currently hospitalized, 210 are in intensive care – five more than reported on Friday.

Percentage of positive tests • Under the state’s original method, the rate is 17.3% over the last three days. This is higher than the seven-day average of 17.1%.

The state’s new method counts all test results, including repeat testing of the same individual. Monday’s rate was 7.7%, below the seven-day average of 11.3%.

[Read more: Utah is changing how it measures the rate of positive COVID-19 tests. Here’s what that means.]

Risk ratios • In the past four weeks, unvaccinated Utahns were 15.8 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than those vaccinated, according to an analysis from the Utah Department of Health. The unvaccinated were also 11 times more likely to be hospitalized and 5.2 times more likely to test positive for the coronavirus.

Totals to date • 553,061 cases; 3,237 deaths; 24,147 hospitalizations; 3,716,117 people tested.