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Though Worries Remain, Sonoran COVID-19 Numbers Start Heading In Right Direction

After setting tragic new case and death records last month, Sonora is starting February with some promising data: new weekly cases and deaths are declining, as is the hospital occupation rate, according to state health authorities. Just two cities — Hermosillo and Navojoa — remain at maximum risk of spread, down from six the week before.

Sonora as a whole is still considered orange, or high risk, by the federal government, but is getting close to yellow, or moderate risk.

“If we continue with the measures, if we continue insisting, we stay at home, we limit mobility, it’s very probable that we’re very close to yellow,” said Dr. Gerardo Álvarez, Sonora’s head of health promotion and disease prevention. “We have to keep up the effort.”

While the state appears to be on its way down from the second wave, state health authorities like Álvarez remain worried.

One of their big worries is Holy Week, which this year falls in late March and early April, and during which many Mexicans travel. During March, many Arizonans also visit the state’s beaches during spring break.

“We must prepare ourselves because population mobility during Holy Week and Easter could start a third wave,” Álvarez said.

The current second wave has been the deadliest period of the pandemic here to date. Until there is widespread vaccination, one of the most effective ways to prevent cases and deaths is to limit movement, according to Álvarez.

Murphy Woodhouse was a senior field correspondent at KJZZ from 2018 to 2023.