Tracking COVID-19 in Alaska: 52 new cases, no new deaths reported Wednesday

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Alaska reported 52 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, according to the Department of Health and Social Services COVID-19 dashboard.

The state announced no new deaths Tuesday. In total, 44 Alaskans with COVID-19 have died since the pandemic began here in March. The state’s death rate is among the lowest in the country.

In Anchorage, health officials said that cases of COVID-19 among people in homeless shelters had swelled to 193 by Wednesday, including nine people who have been hospitalized and one who died.

[Homeless Anchorage residents in quarantine double or triple up in hotel rooms]

Also on Wednesday, the Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corp. announced evidence of community spread of COVID-19 in Nunapitchuk, which is northwest of Bethel. The announcement from YKHC, the Native Village of Nunapitchuk and the City of Nunapitchuk said that the determination was made after a recent case of COVID-19 couldn’t be tied to travel.

Statewide as of Wednesday, 39 people with COVID-19 were hospitalized while another six hospital patients were awaiting test results. Nine people with confirmed or suspected case of the illness were using ventilators by Wednesday, and 80 of the state’s 153 intensive care unit beds were in use.

Active cases of COVID-19 among Alaska residents rose from 4,158 on Tuesday to 4,202 on Wednesday. There were also 712 active cases among nonresidents by Wednesday.

Of the new cases of COVID-19 involving residents, 20 were in Anchorage, including one in Chugiak, one in Eagle River; one was in Soldotna; 12 in Fairbanks; seven in North Pole; two in Palmer; one in Wasilla; one in Utqiagvik; one in Kotzebue and one in Juneau.

Among communities smaller than 1,000 not identified to protect confidentiality, there were two cases in the southern Kenai Peninsula, one case in the Fairbanks North Star Borough and one case in the combined Bristol Bay and Lake and Peninsula boroughs.

Of the two nonresident cases, one was in Kotzebue and another was in an unknown part of the state, data showed.

Of the new cases, it wasn’t clear how many people were showing symptoms of the virus when they tested positive.

The state’s testing positivity rate as of Wednesday was 2.45% over a seven-day rolling average.

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