PANAJI: While the third wave of Covid-19 in Goa surged faster than the first two, it also reached its peak in the shortest duration, just 21 days. The earlier waves logged an average of two months to attain their peaks.
The state recorded the highest number of 3,936 infections on January 19 this year, soon after the third wave began on December 28, 2021. The highest case positivity rate, 45.8%, was registered on January 18, coming close to that of the second wave. The similarities between the two waves, however, end here.
Largely spurred by the Delta variantthe second Covid-19 wave lingered longer, resulting in over 1.1 lakh new cases since its beginning in the middle of March last year. It touched a high on May 7, when 4,195 fresh infections were recorded in a single day.
The first wave began in June 2020, but peaked only close to three months later, in September. Goa recorded 740 cases on September 12, the highest single-day count of the first phase of the pandemic. As is evident, not only did both the earlier waves last longer, but also took a longer time to plateau.
After a fearful start to the pandemic in 2020, when people experienced several harsh restrictions – the harshest being a complete lockdown on activity – they were forced to wait until November of that year to see cases drop below 100. Subsequent months saw a daily average of 40-80 cases till mid-March, 2021, which was the beginning of the second wave.
A similar pattern was noted after the ebb of the second wave, but with slight variations. While infections reduced significantly after the May 2021 peak, cases dropped to below 100 only in October-November.
November proved the leanest month in terms of new infections, with cases ranging between 20 and 40 per day. The daily average of cases, however, did not drop below the 20-mark, except on one day.
An interesting aspect of the third wave was that infections plateaued faster. The daily count cascaded to less than 1,000 cases in a matter of 10 days after the peak. From 910 cases recorded on February 1, the single-day case count reduced to below 300 in just 10 days, while the case positivity rate was 10.5%.
Fewer fatalities were also recorded during the third wave when compared to the larger tolls registered during the two earlier bouts. Hospitalisations were lesser, too. Health experts attributed this to the aggressive anti-Covid vaccination drive, which they said was instrumental in reducing mortalities and hospitalisations.
Goa logged a little over 280 Covid-19 deaths over the past two-and-a-half months and 15,500-odd patients required to be hospitalised.
Meanwhile, on Friday, four fresh Covid-19 infections and 13 recoveries were reported. Both mortality count and hospitalisations over the past seven days have been zero.
The state recorded the highest number of 3,936 infections on January 19 this year, soon after the third wave began on December 28, 2021. The highest case positivity rate, 45.8%, was registered on January 18, coming close to that of the second wave. The similarities between the two waves, however, end here.
Largely spurred by the Delta variantthe second Covid-19 wave lingered longer, resulting in over 1.1 lakh new cases since its beginning in the middle of March last year. It touched a high on May 7, when 4,195 fresh infections were recorded in a single day.
The first wave began in June 2020, but peaked only close to three months later, in September. Goa recorded 740 cases on September 12, the highest single-day count of the first phase of the pandemic. As is evident, not only did both the earlier waves last longer, but also took a longer time to plateau.
After a fearful start to the pandemic in 2020, when people experienced several harsh restrictions – the harshest being a complete lockdown on activity – they were forced to wait until November of that year to see cases drop below 100. Subsequent months saw a daily average of 40-80 cases till mid-March, 2021, which was the beginning of the second wave.
A similar pattern was noted after the ebb of the second wave, but with slight variations. While infections reduced significantly after the May 2021 peak, cases dropped to below 100 only in October-November.
November proved the leanest month in terms of new infections, with cases ranging between 20 and 40 per day. The daily average of cases, however, did not drop below the 20-mark, except on one day.
An interesting aspect of the third wave was that infections plateaued faster. The daily count cascaded to less than 1,000 cases in a matter of 10 days after the peak. From 910 cases recorded on February 1, the single-day case count reduced to below 300 in just 10 days, while the case positivity rate was 10.5%.
Fewer fatalities were also recorded during the third wave when compared to the larger tolls registered during the two earlier bouts. Hospitalisations were lesser, too. Health experts attributed this to the aggressive anti-Covid vaccination drive, which they said was instrumental in reducing mortalities and hospitalisations.
Goa logged a little over 280 Covid-19 deaths over the past two-and-a-half months and 15,500-odd patients required to be hospitalised.
Meanwhile, on Friday, four fresh Covid-19 infections and 13 recoveries were reported. Both mortality count and hospitalisations over the past seven days have been zero.