The latest data from the Ministry of Health confirms the downward trend of the virus, with 356 new cases in the Canary Islands today and just one Covid related death in Tenerife. Of the new cases, there are 181 in Tenerife, 136 in Gran Canaria, 22 in Fuerteventura, 17 in Lanzarote, and none in the three smaller islands.
With 243 people medically discharged today, there are 15,662 active cases in the islands, and the number of Covid patients in wards has dropped to 410, in ICU to 100, and there are 15,152 people in home isolation.
The good news is that the incidence rates for the islands are still dropping with the IA7 now at 142.19, and in fact Gran Canaria now has the highest 7=day incidence rate of all the islands, overtaking Tenerife. Lanzarote’s has dropped to below 70 and in La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro it is below 30.
As ex-pats, we don’t always get the full picture of what is happening in the Islands and this weekend the story of the former Mayor of Garachico and Councillor for the Tenerife Cabildo, Lorenzo Dorta, has been in the Canarian press. He has been talking about his experience with the virus after spending a month in critical condition in Intensive Care and has had months of physiotherapy as part of his recovery.
The ex-mayor said yesterday: "The worst thing was not being allowed to have visitors, you are alone, not having anyone. I was face down in the ICU for 15 days, intubated and unconscious. After being unconscious and sedated all those days, you leave disoriented, you have a series of dreams that you have had in your memory, I laughed, but sometimes it was difficult to distinguish what was real from what was not".
“After this, I was in a room, you can't sleep, you've lost muscle mass and can't walk, after being alone with IVs for so long. You feel unwell, you toss and turn, you don't feel like watching TV or talking to your roommate.”
When he was discharged he had no contact with anyone for a while. "My children left food for me at the door of the house," he said, adding the way he still had to go: "I had to have rehabilitation to strengthen my legs and be able to walk again, and on top of this the mental pressure is immense.”
Finally, he wanted to send a message to the Canarian population, but especially to those who are refusing vaccination and do not respect the measures established to combat the spread of Covid-19: “Please, follow the instructions of all the health authorities, we must obey, because all health personnel are having a very tough time.”
“We all have to get vaccinated for the good of all humanity. We have to keep wearing masks and keeping our distance. If you are fortunate enough to catch the virus with no symptoms, then you have won the lottery. But if you are unlucky enough to go through what I have gone through, then God help you.”
Data for Saturday 14th August 2021:
New cases: 356
Tenerife: 181
Gran Canaria: 136
Fuerteventura: 22
Lanzarote: 17
La Palma: 0
La Gomera: 0
El Hierro: 0
Current Incidence rate (IA7): 142.19
(Cases last 7 days: 3,094)
Gran Canaria: 157.80
Tenerife: 156.79
Fuerteventura: 125.28
Lanzarote: 69.31
La Palma: 27.56
La Gomera: 23.06
El Hierro: 17.94
Current Incidence rate (IA14): 358.97
(Cases last 14 days: 7,798)
Tenerife: 409.32
Gran Canaria: 395.67
Fuerteventura: 273.95
Lanzarote: 134.14
El Hierro: 98.68
La Palma: 74.29
La Gomera: 69.19
General:
Covid patients in hospital: 410 (-15)
Covid patients in ICU: 100 (-1)
Home isolation: 15,152
R number: 0.82 (needs to be below 1)
PCR test positivity rate: 8.78% (should be below 4.5%)
Deaths last 24 hours: 1
Tenerife: 1 (493)
Total deaths: 875
Vaccination:
Total administered: 2,751,276 doses.
Immunised: 1,322,090 people (67.43%)
One dose: 1,580,233 people (80.59%)
Target: 1,960,774 (population over 12 years old)
Medical Discharges in last 24 hours: 243
Tenerife: 153
Gran Canaria: 67
Lanzarote: 18
La Palma: 5
Fuerteventura: 0
La Gomera: 0
El Hierro: 0
Total Active cases per island:
Total: 15,662
Tenerife: 8,978 (+27)
Gran Canaria: 5,996 (+69)
Fuerteventura: 457 (+22)
Lanzarote: 183 (-1)
La Palma: 34 (-5)
La Gomera: 7 (-)
El Hierro: 7 (-)
Municipalities with most active cases in each island:
5,060 in Las Palmas (Gran Canaria)
3,833 in Santa Cruz (Tenerife)
1,672 in La Laguna (Tenerife)
889 in Arona (Tenerife)
728 in Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife)
557 in Adeje (Tenerife)
281 in Santa Lucia de Tirajana (Gran Canaria)
233 in Telde (Gran Canaria)
180 in Puerto del Rosario (Fuerteventura)
162 in Guia de Isora (Tenerife)
161 in Arrecife (Lanzarote)
153 in Puerto de La Cruz (Tenerife)
151 in La Oliva (Fuerteventura)
118 in San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Gran Canaria)
81 in San Miguel de Abona (Tenerife)
56 in Mogán (Gran Canaria)
53 in Santiago del Teide (Tenerife)
(Please note this is not all municipalities, it represents the most infected and tourist areas)
