More than 2,000 people have now tested positive for Covid since reported numbers began, the Health Minister said last night.

The “ominous” milestone came as Government said 37 new cases were reported out of 1,528 test results received - a test positivity rate of 2.4 per cent.

It means there are now 866 active cases and 42 people in hospital with five in intensive care.

Since March 2020, Bermuda has recorded 2,023 confirmed cases of coronavirus, out of these 1,140 have recovered, and 17 people have died as a result of the virus.

Kim Wilson, the Minister of Health, said: "We've hit the ominous mark of 2,000 people having confirmed positive for the coronavirus since our recording process began in 2020.

"I wish to remind the public about the testing process. Specifically, if you are in quarantine or if you are positive – you must get tested on day 14 – not before. You cannot follow the travellers testing guidelines.

"Another important note, with community transmission – personal exemptions are not given unless there are extraordinarily, exceptional circumstances. I say this because, we've been inundated with exemption requests. And I must stress that the vast majority of these requests will not be approved.

"We must recognise that we are under a stay-at-home order for a reason. We had to introduce a short, sharp break to stop the transmission of the virus. This means we have to stop the mixing of individuals in different households, in the workplace and in all other locations where people may gather."

Ms Wilson also addressed the numbers of those who are currently hospitalised and the need to help ease the strain on the hospital.

"Yesterday, we suffered a tragic loss of life in a Covid-19 related death. This was the third death in under a week. This is an incredibly sad development, and my heart goes out to all the grieving families of these individuals.

"Bermuda, we must understand the severity of this outbreak and its residual effects on our services, specifically the strain it is having on our hospital.

“Currently we have more than 40 individuals in hospital care, five of those in ICU. And we are all wishing and hoping that each of these persons successfully recover from this virus.

"The team at the Bermuda Hospitals Board are actively fighting on the front lines day in, and day out, and they are using all their resources to help our fellow Bermudians survive Covid-19.

“So as we close out day three of this stay-at-home period, it is my hope that we continue to stay the course. I know it is challenging and at times frustrating, but we must keep the goal in mind, to reduce the number of admissions to the hospital and reduce the strain on the healthcare system.

"We all have a role to play in stopping the spread of the coronavirus. We continue to encourage residents to speak to their doctor about getting vaccinated. If you haven’t already done so, please register to get vaccinated because vaccination is not only the key to our return to normality, but it can also save lives.

"Please follow Public Health guidelines, wear a mask, practice good hand hygiene, maintain physical distance and download the WeHealth Bermuda app."

One of the new cases is classified as imported by a non-resident who arrived on British Airways BA 159 from London on March 30 and tested positive on their Day 14 test.

Nineteen of the new cases are classified as local transmission with known contact as associated with known cases.

The additional 17 new cases are classified as under investigation. These cases are among residents with no currently identified link to other known cases or history of travel within the past 14 days.

Since the last update, there were 51 recoveries and no additional deaths.

The mean age of all confirmed positive cases is 41 and the ages range from less than 1 year to greater than 100 years.

The mean age of all currently active cases is 41 years and the ages range from less than 10 years (age group: 0-9 years) to greater than 80 years (age group: 80 to 100 years).

The mean age of all hospitalised cases is 64 years and the ages range from less than 30 years (age group: 20 to 29 years) to greater than 80 years (age group: 80 to 100 years).

The mean age of all deceased cases is 75 years and the ages range from less than 60 years (age group: 50 to 59 years) to greater than 80 years (age group: 80 to 100 years).

The source of all cases is as follows: 274 are imported and 1,253 are classified as local transmission of which: 1,156 are Local transmission with known contact/source; and 97 are Local transmission with an unknown contact/source; and 496 are under investigation.

A health ministry spokeswoman said: As investigations proceed, transmission categories may change. Today’s update has one case moving from under investigation to imported, 6 cases moving from under investigation to local transmission with known contact/source and 2 cases moving from under investigation to local transmission with unknown contact/source.“

The seven-day average of our real time reproduction number is 1.07.