Idaho’s coronavirus case numbers continued to tumble this week — receding to a five-month low.

On Friday evening, the state and its seven health districts reported 169,065 confirmed or probable coronavirus cases. That translates to only a 1.0 percent increase from last week.

The week’s 1,713 cases mirrors a seven-day period ending Sept. 11.

The continued slowdown in case numbers mirrors a drop in cases in the K-12 system. On Idaho’s college and university campuses, numbers have remained more or less flat.

In other key metrics from the week, COVID-19 deaths and ICU admissions decreased, overall hospital admissions increased slightly and Idaho administered a record number of coronavirus vaccines.

Despite these encouraging numbers, the week ended with a concerning development.

The Department of Health and Welfare reported Idaho’s first case of the South African coronavirus variant. Many health officials have expressed concern over the new and foreign variants, saying they could be more easily transmitted than the original strain of coronavirus.

In other coronavirus news from the week:

“We’ve made just incredible progress.” An upbeat Gov. Brad Little touted the state’s declining case numbers during an AARP Idaho virtual town hall Tuesday. While Little fielded several calls from seniors who have been unable to get a vaccination appointment, he said nearly a third of Idahoans over the age of 65 have received a shot.

Boise approves reopening plan. The Boise School District will reopen for full-time, face-to-face instruction next month. Elementary and special education students will return to school full-time on March 9. On March 29, the state’s second largest district will reopen for all students in all grades.

 Staffing challenges. It’s not just about the case numbers. As Idaho’s schools look to reopen, they face another obstacle: finding the bus drivers, cafeteria staff and custodians that keep things running smoothly. “There’s a ton of operational stuff that flies under the radar,” Nampa School District spokeswoman Kathleen Tuck said.

Here are this week’s numbers, and comparisons with the previous week:

Weekly positive test rate, as reported by the state: 5.8 percent for week ending Feb. 13, down from 6.4 percent the previous week.