More virus cases, but no Doña Ana County deaths after deadliest week; state readies further re-openings
SANTA FE, New Mexico -- New Mexico recorded 104 new coronavirus cases Sunday, including 13 additional infections in Doña Ana County and 14 more cases from the Otero County Prison outbreak.
State health officials said the cumulative number of cases in Doña Ana County now stands at 658. But there were no new deaths reported there to start off the new week, following what was the deadliest week of the pandemic for the county - with three of their six total deaths occurring.
A majority of the cases to date in Doña Ana County have happened in Las Cruces (138), while Anthony ranks second (102) and Sunland Park is third (98).
With the new cases at the prison, the total number of infections at Otero County detention facilities rose to 649. That figure includes both prison inmates, of which two have died, and detained migrants at the adjacent ICE Otero County Processing Center.
Across the entire state, the infection tally stood 9,723 on Sunday, with 162 patients hospitalized. The state also recorded four more deaths, taking the fatality count to 435.
The latest numbers from state health leaders came as New Mexico will allow breweries to resume indoor service Monday, , the latest type of business to be cleared as the state reopens amid the virus pandemic.
Like restaurants, breweries will be limited to 50% of normal seating capacity. Bars, however, will have to wait with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham summing up her reasoning by saying: “Bars — people stay longer, people stay later.”
State officials continued Sunday to urge residents to stay at home and wear face coverings when out in public. They said the rate of spread was improving as is New Mexico’s testing capacity, but more work still needs to be done.
Below you can see county-by-county data for virus cases and deaths across New Mexico. The data comes from Johns Hopkins University, so the numbers may sometimes vary a bit from what's reported by the state health department. (The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
