Coronavirus Update: North Dakota Reports 1st COVID-19 Death
FARGO, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota health officials on Friday confirmed the state's first death due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.
A Cass County man in his 90s who had underlying health conditions died, the state Health Department said. He acquired the virus through community spread, in which officials can't determine how a patient got infected.
"Each of us has a responsibility to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in North Dakota and protect those most vulnerable to the disease — our elderly and individuals with underlying health conditions," Gov. Doug Burgum said in statement. "We're all in this together."
Officials reported early Friday that 13 people had been hospitalized with the virus. For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, which can include fever and cough but also milder cases of pneumonia, sometimes requiring hospitalization. The risk of death is greater for older adults and people with other health problems.
Burgum has said the rate of spread shows that every county in the state will likely have positive tests in the next week or so. He formed a testing task force that is working to increase the number of checkups.
Seven new cases have been confirmed in North Dakota since Thursday, raising the total number of cases the state has had to 65.
The state on Thursday confirmed a case in a boy younger than 10 who lives in McIntosh County, southeast of Bismarck on the South Dakota border. The McIntosh District Health Unit issued a statement saying the boy was younger than 2 and had been released from the hospital to stay in isolation at home. The county's health administrator, Cheryl Reis-Schilling, urged residents "to be prepared, but not panic" and said officials were working to identify people who had been in close contact with the boy.