Covid-19: Kenya reports 17 more deaths as cases jump by 1,185
Health minister Mutahi Kagwe address county executives for health at Whitesands hotel in Mombasa on October 29 2020 ahead of a press conference on the Covid-19 pandemic in Kenya.
What you need to know:
- Addressing the press in Mombasa County, CS Kagwe announced 1,185 new infections following the testing of 9,851 samples in the last 24 hours.
- Of all the reported patients in the country, 1,119 are hospitalised, 41 of them in intensive care units (ICU) and 26 on ventilator support as of Friday.
Kenya on Friday recorded its highest number of new Covid-19 infections, with Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Mutahi Kagwe sounding yet another warning amid a resurgence of cases.
Addressing a press conference in Mombasa County, CS Kagwe announced 1,185 new infections following the testing of 9,851 samples in the last 24 hours. This raised the country's caseload to 53,797 and the total number of samples tested so far to 687,462.
CS Kagwe also reported that 17 more patients had succumbed to the virus, raising the death toll in Kenya to 981.
Of all the reported patients in the country, 1,119 had been hospitalised, 41 of them in intensive care units (ICU) and 26 on ventilator support, as of Friday.
Mr Kagwe said 45 were on supplementary oxygen (not in ICU) and 15 in high dependency units (HDU).
He further said 4,440 of them were in the home-based care programme and that the youngest of the new patients was 11 months old and the oldest 93. Kenyans numbered 1,145 while the rest were foreigners.
County cases
In his plea for the public to exercise utmost caution, the minister said, "People are still falling sick. We are witnessing a huge upsurge of cases. It disheartening to note that counties that were flattening the curve are experiencing a surge. We need to reverse the situation by encouraging people to adhere to containment measures," he said.
He announced that Nairobi remained the county with the highest number of infections - 25,226. Mombasa was second with 4,194 cases, Kiambu third with 3,203, Nakuru fourth with 2,530 and Kajiado fifth with 2,175 cases.
Of the 1,185 new cases, the capital city accounted for 373, Nakuru 157, Mombasa 118, Kiambu 94, Kisumu 61, Uasin Gishu 51, Kericho 39 and Kakamega 38.
And then came Kisii with 27, Narok 25, Trans Nzoia and Bomet 22 each, Kajiado 20, Siaya 19, Machakos 17, Bungoma 16, Meru 15, Busia 14 and Makueni 10.
Kilifi and Nyandarua counties both recorded eight new case, Vihiga and Nyamira six each, Elgeyo Marakwet and Laikipia three each, Homa Bay, Nandi, Embu and Murang'a two each, and Garissa, Kitui, Taita Taveta, Kirinyaga and Kwale one each.
CS Kagwe also announced that 272 more patients had recovered from the disease, 203 of them at home and 69 in hospitals, raising Kenya's total number of recovered patients to 35,876.
