Coronavirus cases grow in Arizona; Navajo Nation going to lockdown

PHOENIX — The coronavirus outbreak continues to surge in Arizona, with the state reporting over 3,000 new known COVID-19 cases on Saturday for the third day in a week and the most in one day since July.

The state Department of Health Services reported 3,476 additional cases and 45 deaths, the most deaths reported in a single day in two weeks. The state’s totals rose to 273,063 cases and 6,300 deaths.

As of Friday, 1,470 people were hospitalized with the coronavirus, the most since early August. The number of coronavirus patients in intensive care beds reached 362 on Friday, the most since late August.

Current coronavirus-related hospitalizations remain far below levels reached when Arizona was a national hot spot last summer. At the peak of the summer outbreak, they topped 3,500. Arizona’s outbreak bottomed out in September but has steadily increased through October and into November.

State and health officials have said the recent increase is due to factors that include business and school re-openings and public fatigue with precautions such as masking.

Warning that conditions likely will get worse due to Thanksgiving family gatherings and other socializing, officials advise against congregating outside households that live together. They also continue to urge people to wear masks when in public, practice social distancing, wash hands frequently and stay home when sick.

Navajo Nation orders 3-week stay-at-home lockdown

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — The Navajo Nation on Monday will reinstate a stay-at-home lockdown for the entire reservation while closing tribal offices and requiring new closures and safety measures for businesses due to rising COVID-19 cases.

The lockdown goes into effect Monday for a three-week period, tribal officials announced Friday night.

A previously ordered 56-hour weekend curfew began Friday night.

Much of the Navajo Nation was closed between March and August as the coronavirus swept through the vast reservation that covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah in the U.S. Southwest.

The Navajo Nation Department of Health on Wednesday warned residents of new “uncontrolled spread” of the virus in 34 communities on the reservation.

Before the announcement, tribal officials earlier Friday evening reported 97 additional known cases and two more deaths, increasing the total cases to 13,069 with 598 deaths.

Only essential businesses such as gas stations, grocery stores, laundromats and restaurants may remain open and they can only be open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and must enforce masking and distancing, the statement said.

The reservation spans more than 27,000 square miles.

Most people experience mild or moderate symptoms with the coronavirus, 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.