Taiwan reported its fourth death from COVID-19 this year and an additional 578 new cases of the disease Saturday, 442 domestically transmitted and 136 imported, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center.

The newly reported death involved a woman in her 90s, who was confirmed on April 4 to have been infected, and listed as part of a cluster in Keelung that involves several police officers in the northern port city. She died on April 7, the CECC said.

The woman, who had the underlying conditions of high blood pressure and Parkinson’s disease, had not been vaccinated, Centers for Diseases Control Deputy Director-General Lo Yi-chun (???) said during the CECC’s press briefing Saturday.

According to Lo, the woman had oxygen saturation below 94 percent. She also developed bacterial pneumonia and septic shock while being treated with remdesivir before passing away.

Meanwhile, after two days with more than 300 locally transmitted cases reported daily, the number rose to 442 Saturday, the highest single-day tally this year. Taiwan has reported more than 100 daily domestic cases since April 1.

Taiwan’s six municipalities continue to account for the majority of cases, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (???) said during the press briefing.

New Taipei had the highest number of new domestic cases, with 143, followed by Taipei 95, Taoyuan 41, Kaohsiung 38, Taichung seven, and Tainan six, Chen said.

Other areas in Taiwan that recorded 10 or more cases include Keelung City with 39, Hualien County 24, Pingtung County 14, and Yilan County 10, according to Chen

The CECC reported five new moderate to severe infections on Saturday, bringing the total of such cases to 10 since Jan. 1, out of a total of 3,108 domestic cases since the start of the year, while the others were either mild or asymptomatic, according to Lo.

The five new moderate to severe infections included the woman, whose death was reported Saturday, the second death among the 10 moderate to severe infections, Lo said.

Meanwhile, 136 new imported cases were reported Friday, of which 107 involved travelers who tested positive on arrival in Taiwan, the CECC said.

To date, Taiwan has confirmed 26,836 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in early 2020, including 18,149 domestically transmitted infections, according to CECC data.

With the new death reported on Saturday, the number of confirmed COVID-19 fatalities in the country rose to 854, the data showed.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel