The president of the Association of Mayors of Puerto Rico, Luis Javier Hernández Ortiz, called on the central government to take stricter measures to try to prevent further infections from Covid-19.
“The reality is that certain sections of the population have not followed the recommendations, with the results we are seeing today. The numbers have increased dramatically, the variants have made the virus more contagious and deadly, “he said.
Hernández Ortiz added that hospitals are filling up all over Puerto Rico and that the positivity rate is in the red in practically all municipalities. “Perhaps the worst weeks of the entire pandemic await us. My request to the government to think about saving lives instead of the economy. We are once again at the disposal of Governor Pedro Pierluisi to sit down at the table and make new decisions in the interest of the country ”.
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Puerto Rico woke up Tuesday to seven new deaths from the pandemic, while the number of hospital admissions related to the virus rose to 406, translating to 19 more than yesterday, according to data from the Department of Health. The agency also released the number of 714 new confirmed positive cases, 409 probable positive cases and 1,265 presumed positive cases. Given this, the accumulated confirmed cases are 103,957, while the probable cases are 12,421 and the suspects 104,819.
The leader of the popular mayors expressed concern over the reported outbreaks, including Yabucoa Mayor Rafael Surillo ordering the cancellation of all municipal activities after confirming nine coronavirus outbreaks in less than a week. Surillo confirmed he is dealing with 9 outbreaks. “Last week there were 7 outbreaks in Yabucoa and overnight there were 2 more outbreaks and we are very concerned,” the city council told a radio station.
The president’s appeal of the 41 associate mayors adds to the fact that this morning the US health authorities recommended “a break” on the administration of the single-use Johnson & Johnson vaccine against Covid-19c in view of the examining reports of potentially dangerous blood clots. “We have never been confronted with a pandemic of this magnitude before, and the result is that, knowing that we and that we have, we exercise maximum control,” concluded Hernández Ortiz.