Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, has seen a spike in coronavirus case numbers that has pushed the coastal town to become the epicenter of the pandemic in the state. 

Guerrero Health Minister Carlos de la Peña Pintos reported Friday that Zihuatanejo moved from third to first place among municipalities in the state with 296 confirmed active coronavirus cases, surpassing Acapulco which had 284 active cases and Chilpancingo, which reported 179.

On Friday Guerrero reported 233 new cases of the coronavirus in the previous 24 hours for a total of 10,886. The state has recorded 1,380 deaths. 

On a positive note, de la Peña confirmed that three municipalities have recorded no cases of the virus. They are San Miguel Totolapan, Cualac and Iliatenco. 

The minister said 260 patients are hospitalized with the virus, representing 32% of beds designated for coronavirus patients. Sixty-one of those patients are intubated, 88 are reported to be in severe condition and 111 are stable. 

Across the state, he said, hospitalizations are going down. In Acapulco hospitals are 35.8% full, in Chilpancingo 33.3% and in Zihuatenejo just 18.5% of beds are in use. 

De la Peña asked citizens to continue to follow health protocols so that the downward trend continues.

Guerrero is currently at the orange level on the coronavirus “stoplight” map, meaning it is still at high risk for contagion, and will remain so for the next two weeks.

Source: Milenio (sp), Quadratín Guerrero (sp), El Sol de Acapulco (sp), La Razón (sp)