Fiji

The new cases were among the 1043 infections confirmed by the ministry on Sunday.

Over 14-thousand positive people are in isolation in the western and central divisions.

Health Secretary James Fong said the five patients are being isolated at the Levuka Hospital.

He said three of them were recorded on Ovalau while the other two on Gau.

He said the ministry is working with the Lomaiviti Provincial Council to monitor the situation on both islands.

The Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Doctor James Fong confirmed 13 new COVID-19 deaths for the period of 14th July to 17th July.

Most of these deaths are elderly people, the eldest being 88-year-old woman who was not vaccinated. The youngest was a 49-year old man who was not fully vaccinated.

From this list of new deaths, seven were women and six were men.

There have now been 98 deaths due to COVID-19, with 96 of these deaths during the outbreak that started in April this year.

Due to the increasing widespread transmission of COVID-19 disease across Viti Levu, pregnant women are at a higher risk of contracting the virus which may cause severe illness, the ministry said.

“As a result, these women are prioritised for receiving the Moderna vaccines that provide earlier protection against the disease due to its shorter interval period of 28 days between the first and the second dose.”

There have been five new COVID-19 deaths for the period of 13th July to 16th July.

There have now been 85 deaths due to COVID-19 in Fiji, with 83 of these deaths during the outbreak that started in April this year.

We also have recorded 34 COVID-19 positive patients who died from the serious medical conditions that they had before they contracted COVID-19; these are not classified as COVID-19 deaths.

There have been 159 new recoveries reported since the last update, which means that there are now 12,975 active cases.

Winger Sevu Reece scored three first half tries and Ardie Savea one in his 50th test for New Zealand to give the All Blacks a 29-6 lead at half-time.

Fiji hit back early in the second spell with a try to prop Peni Ravai, but the All Blacks continued to dominate, running in five second half tries - including a double for hooker Samisoni Taukei'aho on debut.

The New Zealanders took a while to hit their straps, but once Reece scored his first try in the 14th minute, they never looked back.

That compares to 1220 cases and 10 deaths in the previous 24-hour period.

The government also confirmed six more deaths last night, taking the death toll to 80 - 78 of these from the latest outbreak that began in April.

Health Secretary Dr James Fong said all six patients were unvaccinated.

"A 58-year old man from Tacirua presented to a medical facility on Wednesday with severe Covid symptoms including shortness of breath. His condition worsened at the health centre and he died on the same day.

Saturday's game in Hamilton will draw the biggest crowd for the All Blacks this year.

Only 15,103 fans turned up in Dunedin for game one against Fiji, more than at Mt Smart for New Zealand's win over Tonga, but still disappointing for an All Blacks test match.

Waikato Stadium is heading towards a sell-out and for the double-header between Manu Samoa and Tonga followed by the All Blacks against Fiji.

After Fiji's showing last week All Blacks coach Ian Foster thinks the public might be more clued up now about what type of opposition his side is facing.

It is the largest number of cases in a single day since the latest outbreak began in April.

There were another five deaths which health authorities say have occurred over the past four days.

This follows Thursday's announcement of 10 additional deaths over the past week.

The death toll in Fiji has now reached 74.

The most recent deaths included four people in their sixties and a 78 year old - none of whom were vaccinated.

There are now 11,033 active cases with Fiji having recording nearly 14 thousand cases in the recent outbreak.

According to the Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Doctor James Fong, most of the deaths are elderly people.

Six of them are women and four men.

The oldest is a 92-year-old man who was not vaccinated and the youngest is a 42-year-old woman who was not fully vaccinated.

From the current list of deaths, eight are not vaccinated while two have received their first doses of the vaccine.

In the midst of these deaths, Fiji has recorded 634 new cases for the 24 hour period that ended at 8am yesterday.

That compares to 873 cases and three deaths in the previous 24-hour update.

The Health Ministry also announced last night a 58-year-old man from Delaivalelevu had died at home.

The man's family reported that he had been feeling unwell for one week.

Health Secretary James Fong said the man had received his first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine in mid-June but was yet to get the second jab when he died.

Fiji now has 9725 active cases in isolation and 59 deaths reported, with 57 of them from this latest outbreak that began in April.