Riverside County announces 2 new cases of coronavirus for a total of 30; and 5th death

A fifth person has died and was among two new cases of the coronavirus in Riverside County, bringing the total number of cases in the county to 30, officials announced Saturday afternoon, March 21.

One of the new cases was a man over 70 from the Coachella Valley who died and was found to have tested positive for the virus after death, county spokeswoman Brooke Federico said.

A man in his 60s from southern Riverside County represented the second case announced Saturday, Federico said.

The previous four deaths were all from the Coachella Valley, officials said earlier this week.

The two cases reported Saturday bring a slowdown to the six cases reported both Thursday and Friday, which boosted the county’s total from 16 to 28.

In all, 17 cases are in the Coachella Valley, six are in western Riverside County and six are in the southwest. One patient was a cruise ship passenger who returned to the county and was self-isolating at home, Federico said earlier this week.