COVID-19: Eight more die from the disease, 145 more confirmed infected in Oklahoma as cases rise to 3,618

State health officials reported the additional deaths Thursday. There have been 222 deaths due to COVID-19 since March 19.

Five of the reported fatalities occurred within the last 24 hours. The others died between April 23 to April 28, OSDH said.

Health officials also reported that an additional 145 people have been confirmed to be infected by COVID-19. There have been 3,618 confirmed cases in Oklahoma since early March.

In northeast Oklahoma, two of the deaths were reported in Delaware County, one in Mayes County and one in Wagoner County. One person in the 50-64 age group died from the disease. The other deaths were men and women older than 65.

Prevention of COVID-19’s spread remains the overall goal to reduce strain on hospitals and save lives. Prevention methods include social distancing, home isolation, wearing cloth face coverings and enhancing hygiene practices.

Public health officials started recommending in early April that people wear cloth face coverings to help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The recommendation is not to prevent the wearer from contracting the virus but to help prevent the wearer from unknowingly spreading it. COVID-19 has an incubation period of two days to two weeks, during which time a person may be contagious but not have symptoms.

Social distancing means staying out of group or congregate settings, avoiding mass gatherings and maintaining a distance of at least 6 feet from others. Congregate settings are public places where close contact may occur, such as grocery stores, movie theaters, churches and stadiums.

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Interactive graphic: COVID-19 in Oklahoma

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