Logan • Utah State University’s Latinx Creative Society has dedicated an altar to those who have died due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The club’s founders, alumni and community members on Monday made an “ofrenda” outside of the Taggart Student Center on campus. The altar features 30 photos of local residents who died as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, The Herald Journal reported.
“A lot of people who died didn’t have the opportunity to say goodbye,” said Crescencio López-González, an associate professor at the university and the head of the club. “This is a way to say ‘It’s OK to come back.’”
Of Utah’s 620 coronavirus deaths, 126 have been Latinos, despite making up only 14.2% of the state’s population, according to the state Department of Health.
Utah reported on Tuesday its highest number of hospitalizations from the coronavirus since the pandemic began with 366, breaking Monday’s record by 18 patients. The state also reported six new deaths from the virus on Tuesday.
The number of infections is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some — especially older adults and people with existing health problems — it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
