The Navajo Nation on Tuesday reported 151 new coronavirus cases, bringing its total case count to 21,327.

The Navajo Department of Health also recorded seven more coronavirus-related deaths for the reservation that stretches over parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, with a total death toll of 755 since the start of the pandemic. 

The Navajo Nation saw its worst infection case count report on Nov. 21, when the tribe confirmed 398 new COVID-19 infections in a single day. Its second-worst daily case tally was on Dec. 9, when the reservation reported 348 cases. 

With the steady uptick in cases, the Health Department reportedly confirmed that the first doses of the Moderna vaccine—which was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration— arrived at the Navajo Area Indian Health Service.  

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez told ABC’s Albuquerque, N.M. affiliate station KOAT-TV on Tuesday that roughly eight thousand Moderna vaccines were sent directly to healthcare facilities across the reservation, noting that the initial shipment will continue to vaccinate health care workers, first responders and residents of nursing homes. The nation also received its first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine last week.

The vaccines come as the Navajo Nation is in a three-week lockdown, requiring all residents to leave their homes just for essential needs like food, medicine or working for an essential job. The lockdown was originally supposed to end Dec. 6, but due to the “alarming rise in positive COVID-19 cases and uncontrolled spread in 75 communities across the Navajo Nation,” according to the order, the reservation lengthened the mandate until Dec. 28.

“These cluster cases are a direct result of family gatherings and off-Reservation travel. They also have led to an outbreak and a second surge in cases on the Navajo Nation,” the order stated. “Cases in surrounding states and across the country have been on an upward trajectory for the last two months and there is uncontrolled spread in nearly every state. Some states, including states surrounding the Nation, are experiencing a record high number of cases. These circumstances are overwhelming the health care system on the Navajo Nation and must be mitigated immediately.”

Rachel Bucchino is a reporter at the National Interest. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report and The Hill. 

Image: Reuters