Saskatchewan health officials announced on Saturday that eight more patients have died after testing positive for COVID-19.

They also reported 480 new active COVID-19 cases, and 418 more recoveries.

The Central East Zone reported three new deaths—the highest total out of any zone in Saskatchewan. The Saskatoon and South Central zones reported two each, while the South West Zone reported one.

The Saskatoon Zone led the way with 102 new active cases reported on Saturday. Regina was second with 72. There are now 4,824 active cases across Saskatchewan.

North Central reported 22 new cases, 30 more recoveries, and no deaths in Saturday’s update. The province also reassigned seven cases to North Central. Those cases were announced without residency information on Sept. 29 and Sept. 30.

North Central now has 432 active cases in the region—a decrease of one from the day before.

Prince Albert reported 10 new cases, while North Central Zone 1 reported eight and Zone 3 reported for. There are now 183 active cases in Prince Albert, 163 in Zone 1, and 86 in Zone 3.

The Far North West reported 17 new cases and 15 recoveries. There are now 233 active cases in the region.

The Far North East reported seven new cases and 23 recoveries. There are now 163 active cases in the region.

Far North Central reported no new cases or recoveries. The active case total remains unchanged at nine.

The North East, which includes Melfort, Nipawin and Tisdale, reported 15 new cases and seven recoveries. There are now 152 active cases in the area.

As of Saturday, Saskatchewan has 306 COVID-19 patients in hospital, including 67 in the ICU. Four of those intensive care hospitalizations are in North Central. Roughly 74 per cent of all hospitalized patients are not fully vaccinated.

Roughly 17 per cent of Saturday’s new cases were in fully vaccinated patients. Roughly 32 per cent of all cases involved patients in their 20s or 30s.

Saskatchewan has reported an average of 478 new COVID-19 cases per day over the past seven days.