Haverhill recorded its first death attributable to the coronavirus, according to a statement today from Haverhill Mayor James J, Fiorentini.
In what has become his daily posting to social media, the mayor said the victim was elderly and had underlying health issues.
“Our heart goes out to this person and his or her family,” he said.
Fiorentini also reported a spike in confirmed cases of COVID-19—18 in the last day—but notes the increase is related to a greater number of people being tested at various sites. Altogether, the city has had 142 cases of illness with five currently hospitalized and 44 who appear to have recovered.
Statewide, as of Friday afternoon, Massachusetts has recorded 599 deaths among 20,974 confirmed infections— 2,670 in Essex County.
Across the border, Rockingham County is reporting 268 confirmed cases as of Thursday. Across the Granite State, there have been 819 people diagnosed with the illness with 234 people who have recovered and 21 who have died.
Meanwhile, Gov. Charlie Baker said Friday, the surge in expected COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization in Massachusetts may arrive closer to the end of the 10-day window from now through April 20. The state is officially advising all residents to wear a mask or face covering when they leave their homes.
Prisoners’ Legal Services said Friday COVID-19 cases have been detected among Massachusetts prisoners at more than twice the rate of the general population. It calculated that 46 prisoners out of the 7,841 incarcerated across the state have contracted the illness, a rate of .59 percent that is about 2.5 times as high as the statewide rate of .24 percent. The group also estimated that the infection rate for corrections department employees is .33 percent, larger than the general population rate as well.