Taiwan on Friday reported 19,073 new COVID-19 infections and 40 deaths from the disease, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).

The new cases represented a 23.8-percent increase from the same day a week earlier, CECC data showed.

The deceased reported on Friday ranged in age from their 40s to their 90s. All but two had underlying health conditions, while 23 of them were unvaccinated against COVID-19, the CECC said.

Meanwhile, the CECC reported 91 new cases classified as moderate and 34 as severe.

Regional breakdown

Regionally, New Taipei recorded the highest number of new cases, with 3,850, followed by Taichung with 2,451 and Taoyuan with 2,230.

Taipei reported 2,125 new cases, Kaohsiung 2,003, Tainan 1,558, Changhua 810, Hsinchu County 645, Hsinchu City 563, Miaoli 389, Pingtung 381 and Yunlin 374.

Chiayi County had 260 cases, Nantou 251, Yilan 238, Keelung 232, Hualien 202, Chiayi City 148, Taitung 103, Kinmen 80, Penghu 65 and the Matsu Islands seven, the CECC said.

To date, Taiwan has recorded 8,663,616 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in early 2020, including 39,246 classified as imported.

With the 40 deaths reported on Friday, the number of confirmed COVID-19 fatalities in the country rose to 15,039.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel