A leading Mexican health official says that Sonoran hospitals are facing a troubling rise in demand during the coronavirus pandemic.

On Wednesday, Dr. Hugo López-Gatell, undersecretary of prevention and health promotion, said Sonora will “definitely” remain in red status. He was referring to the new semáforo — or traffic light scale — in which red means maximum risk.

“A rising trend of hospital occupancy, concern about whether that trend will continue,” Gatell summarized.

It’s also unclear if hospital demand will ultimately exceed predictions, he said. Patients requiring intensive care are on a similar trajectory.

“We are indeed at a critical point of the pandemic here in Sonora,” said Dr. Susana Pérez , head of the intensive care unit at the Hospital General de Sonora. Her hospital is now at over 80 percent capacity, and many patients are showing up with serious cases and poor prognoses.

“That’s what my colleagues are seeing every day,” she said. “Death.”

And that takes a major toll, as does the fear of falling ill themselves. Psychological help is now available for medical staff struggling with the mental impact, according to Pérez.

“They’re a lot of mixed emotions,” she said. But among them is a sense of duty.