COVID-19 caused painful casualties in Maine, mainly borne by state elders

They were teachers and musicians, retired firefighters, and veterans, lobstermen, shipbuilders, and peasants.

Some were new immigrants to the United States, while others were descendants of the main early leaders.

Too many children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and the community suddenly mourned the loss of family patriarchs and patriarchs as the deadly coronavirus hit the oldest citizens of Maine so disproportionately. ..

Maine officially surpassed 1,000 COVID-19 deaths on Tuesday and joined the other 45 states that crossed its solemn milestone early in the pandemic. Primarily symbolically, the 1,000th death in Maine occurs when the COVID-19 case rate and hospitalizations are again skyrocketing across the state.

Demography of COVID-19 in Maine has changed dramatically in recent months, with the majority of new coronavirus cases in people under the age of 40, mainly due to vaccine availability and high vaccination coverage. You can see it. Among the oldest citizens of Maine.

Approximately 53% of all COVID-related deaths, or 535 of the 1,002 reported as of Tuesday, are residents of Maine over the age of 80, even though they make up only 5% of the population. bottom. An additional 254 deaths (25.4 percent) were mainners in their 70s, and 126 residents in their 60s were victims of the virus.

Overall, 915 of the 1,002 deaths in Maine (a staggering 91.3%) are included in Maine over the age of 60, even though they account for less than 20% of all cases to date. I am.

“We lost to COVID-19 the people we loved and cherished. Parents, grandparents, siblings, children, loved ones and friends, all important members of the Maine community.” Governor Janet Mills said in a statement on Tuesday. “We mourn their death and mourn the moment they can no longer share with us.”

More than half of Maine’s deaths occurred between December 2020 and February 2021. This is because both cases and hospitalizations surged to unprecedented levels during the pandemic. The current surge has already exceeded the length of hospital stay and may exceed that in terms of number of cases.

Statistically, Maine has been doing better than almost every other state in the last 18 months.

According to follow-up and analysis by Maine, 73 people die for every 100,000 inhabitants, with lower COVID-19 mortality rates than all but Vermont, Hawaii, and Alaska. I am. New York Times.. That’s about one-third of the country’s total, one-quarter of Mississippi’s nation, and 311 deaths for every 100,000 inhabitants.

Not surprisingly, the two most populous counties in Maine account for the largest share of deaths associated with COVID cases. Combining Cumberland and York counties, the viral disease killed 361 inhabitants, followed by Penobscot county with 132 and Androscoggin with 92 deaths.

However, some of Maine’s more rural counties have higher per capita mortality rates, despite their sparse population. For example, in Oxford County, 1 in 817 people have died from COVID since March 2020, while in Aroostook, 1 in 944 people have died.

Meanwhile, in Lincoln County, one in 8,659 people died, one-tenth that of Oxford County, while in neighboring Knox County, one in 3,977 people died, the second lowest in the state. was.

Earlier this week, the United States set another symbolic but historic milestone when COVID-related deaths occurred. Exceeded an estimated 675,000 deaths Caused by the national 1918 influenza pandemic. Thankfully, Maine is as short as the estimated 5,000 deaths from the 1918 pandemic.

However, each of these 1,002 deaths represents a grandparent or parent, an aunt or uncle, a friend or colleague, or a neighbor of someone else in Maine. And due to the strict safety measures implemented in hospitals to limit the spread of the virus, many of those 1,002 people died without the people they knew or loved around them.

As a hospital minister, Rev. Sherry Snow provided bedside advice to those who lost the fight against illness and families who were stuck outside the parking lot or forced to say goodbye by phone. I had to. The experience was not what Yuki expected during her minister.

“When I enter the COVID unit, I’m wearing a scrub now, and hospital ministers usually don’t wear hospital scrubs,” said Snow, a clinical minister of Southern Main Healthcare in Bideford and Sanford. rice field. “I didn’t think I was in a position to promote goodbye at the end of life, virtually or by phone.”

Mr Snow said he was witnessing “a lot of sadness, loneliness, people who can’t visit with their loved ones.” But she has also seen that the pandemic not only seeks and conveys forgiveness, but also reaffirms the importance of saying “love” or “thank you” to each other.

And while Snow said he saw a lot of sadness during the pandemic, she also saw how a pandemic could lead to positive changes. As an example, Snow remembered being visited by someone who was in a “very dire situation” the last time he saw them in the COVID unit. The ex-patient who recovered is back to thank her and explain how she works to rebuild her family relationship.

“People remember what’s important in their lives and maximize their abilities,” Snow said.

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