ALBUQUERQUE – New Mexico marked more grim milestones Wednesday with confirmed COVID-19 infections surpassing the 100,000 mark and the daily death toll reaching a new high as some public health restrictions were eased after a two-week lockdown.
Health officials reported an additional 1,549 confirmed cases for the day, bringing the statewide total to nearly 100,970. Data show about half of the state’s total cases since the pandemic began have been reported in just the past month.
The 40 additional deaths reported Wednesday included people who ranged in age from their 40s into their 80s. Nearly all of them had been hospitalized and had underlying conditions.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham acknowledged the latest figures in a statement issued Wednesday. She said she was praying for the families that have been affected and for health care providers and first responders who have been on the front lines. She also talked about the economic fallout that has resulted, saying the state must be “clear-eyed about the risks we face.”
“There can be no doubt: We are headed for a painful winter,” she said. “More New Mexicans will contract this virus and fall seriously ill. Some will lose their lives. Today alone we lost 40 New Mexicans to this virus. We cannot become numb to this tragedy.”
Like other states, New Mexico has been dealing with a surge in infections, deaths and hospitalizations. Health care providers say they are at capacity, and laboratories have been struggling to keep up with growing demand for testing.
Health officials expect an uptick in cases in the coming weeks as a result of family gatherings over the Thanksgiving holiday.
Lujan Grisham reiterated her pleas for New Mexicans to abide by the health restrictions, which include staying home as much as possible, wearing a mask and keeping distance from other people.
As part of the latest order that took effect Wednesday, the state universally lifted some provisions of its two-week lockdown by restoring limited outdoor restaurant dining and allowing “close contact” businesses such as exercise gyms to reopen at 25% of capacity with up to 10 customers.
As counties move out of the red with lesser rates of spread and case counts, more restrictions can be shed. However, all but one of the state’s 33 counties are deep in the red zone and it will take some time before conditions improve.
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said during a telephone town hall Wednesday that it’s likely to take several months for Bernalillo County, which encompasses the city, to qualify for reopening under the state’s new color-coded criteria. He urged patience as preparations are made for emergency vaccination approval and distribution.
“If we can hang on for another three to six months, we can all go to the movies together,” Keller said.
The city is reopening the municipal zoo and museums under an online reservation system and allowing brief library visits of up to 15 minutes.
Associated Press writer Morgan Lee in Santa Fe contributed to this report.
