Fiji

There were 1220 new cases reported in the 24-hour period that ended at 8am yesterday.

The Ministry of Health said there were seven deaths between 31 July and 2 August.

Six people died in the Central Division, and one death was from the Western Division.

The Western division has seen new cases escalate to 464 in a day.

There were 756 new COVID-19 cases in the Central Division.

There have been three more deaths of COVID-19 positive patients however doctors have determined that these were due to serious pre-existing medical conditions.

Fiji reported 1100 new cases and 13 more deaths today, bringing to total death toll to 254.

Of the deaths, 252 of them have come from the April outbreak of the Delta variant of Covid-19.

Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta said New Zealand paid for 100,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine directly from the Spanish government to meet Fiji's immediate vaccine needs. The vaccines were due to arrive today.

"Our thoughts remain with Fiji during this incredibly challenging period," Mahuta said in a statement.

According to Tonga Police, the packages washed up on at Höleva and Ha’alaufuli in Vava’u late last month.

Fiji’s Narcotics Bureau is liaising with local and regional counterparts following the major discovery and officers based at Maritime Police Stations especially in the Lau Group and Kadavu have alerted their respective communities to call Police should they find similar packages.

The Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Doctor James Fong confirmed that the 13 deaths were reported between 29th July and August 1st.

Seven of the deaths were in the Central Division, and six were in the West.

Most of these deaths are elderly, 90 being the oldest and 44 being the youngest.

Of the 13 individuals who died, 2 only have received their first dose of the vaccine while eleven have not being vaccinated.

Health authorities reported 632 new cases in the latest daily update, meaning over 30-thousand people have tested positive to the virus since April.

Two more deaths from the virus were reported, but the Ministry of Health says the 7-day rolling average of COVID deaths per day is eight.

Since April 239 deaths have been recorded from COVID in Fiji. Before the current outbreak began, only two people in Fiji had died from COVID-19.

The first fire reported at 8pm local time occurred in central Ba where 8 shops were destroyed.

The second case of fire at the Tappoos warehouse was reported at the Raiwaqa Police Station after 11pm. Police indicated the two fires were not linked.

But a police release says certain individuals tried to use the two fires to rally support against the government to incite violence and instability.

It says police won't allow this to happen, and that Fijians should expect more stringent measures to be implemented.

The government reported 1163 new cases and six deaths in the 24 hours to 8am yesterday.

That compares with 1301 cases and nine deaths in the previous 24-hour period.

Health Secretary Doctor James Fong said all the latest victims were unvaccinated.

He said severe disease and death due to the coronavirus among infants were rare.

"However the doctors overseeing this baby's care confirmed that he did die because of Covid-19," Dr Fong said. "And we know that once a very high level of infections are reached in the community, these rare events do occur.

Rova competed in the women’s 50 meters freestyle last night.

She made a perfect start and hung on to for a third-place finish in her Olympics debut.

Rova clocked a time of 27.11 seconds.

Meanwhile, the Pacific’s fastest man Banuve Tabakaucoro will be in action today.

Tabakaucoro will be running in heat two of the men’s 100 meters and the first three from the heat will qualify for the next round.

There were nine deaths between the 26th and 27th of this month.

The Ministry of Health has confirmed that there have been 245 new recoveries reported since the last update.

There are now 20,200 active cases.

Of the new cases announced yesterday, 293 cases are from the Western Division and 1008 cases are from the Central Division.

17,774 active cases are in the Central Division and 2,426 in the West.

53 patients are considered to be in severe condition, and 16 are in critical condition.

Since April, Fiji's COVID-19 outbreak has escalated to more than 25,000 cases.

However, in June Fiji began distinguishing between COVID-19 deaths and people who tested positive for the disease but died of other medical conditions.

Michael Baker, a professor of public health at Otago University, said Fiji may be downplaying the pandemic's cost.