04/04/20 Two new deaths and 14 new cases of COVID-19 announced in Alaska

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Contact: Clinton Bennett, DHSS, (907) 269-4996, clinton.bennett@alaska.gov

Two new deaths and 14 new cases of COVID-19 announced in Alaska

April 4, 2020 ANCHORAGE — The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) today announced two new deaths of Alaska residents from COVID-19 and 14 new cases of the disease in six Alaska communities – Anchorage (7), Eagle River/Chugiak (1), Fairbanks (3), North Pole (1), Juneau (1) and Anchor Point (1). This brings the total case count in Alaska to 171.
One of those new cases is one of the people who died.

These new cases and deaths were reported from 12:00 a.m. until 11:59 p.m. on April 3 and reflect data posted at noon today on coronavirus.alaska.gov. This new reporting schedule for Alaska’s COVID-19 cases began on Thursday with the rollout of a new data dashboard.

The Anchor Point case reported today was in a middle-aged male who developed symptoms and subsequently died of COVID-19 out-of-state on March 29. The DHSS Section of Epidemiology was notified of this person’s death by the health authorities in the state where the individual died. The second death is an older female from Fairbanks who was confirmed as a positive case on March 27. She had been hospitalized and passed away on April 3.

“Our hearts go out to the families of these deceased Alaskans,” said Governor Mike Dunleavy. “This is a heartbreaking reminder of how important it is for all of us to continue doing our part to slow down the transmission of this virus by strictly adhering to the social distancing and travel mandates and other health advisories.”

DHSS Commissioner Adam Crum added, “We are saddened by the news of these deaths which brings the total number of Alaskans who have died to five. Two of these five acquired their infections and passed away outside of the state, but these are all Alaskans. Our thoughts are with these communities where these individuals lived and with all those affected by these losses.”

Of the 13 new cases today (not including the death), seven are male and six are female. One case is aged 10-19, two are aged 20-29, two are aged 30-39, four are aged 40-49, two are aged 50-59, one is aged 60-69 and one is aged 70-79. A total of 16 people have been hospitalized in Alaska; one new hospitalization has been added in the past 24 hour reporting period.

Stay informed:
•Alaska’s Response
o Find more information about how to keep yourself and your family healthy at the DHSS webpage, coronavirus.alaska.gov
o Visit the governor’s webpage on COVID-19 at gov.alaska.gov/covid19news
o Visit ready.alaska.gov/covid19 on the Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Management webpage for Unified Command information, community press releases and other documents.

•United States response: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leads the U.S. response.

•Global response: The World Health Organization guides the global response.

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