ST. PAUL — Health officials have confirmed another 15 flu-related deaths in the state, according to a report Thursday, Feb. 7, from the Minnesota Department of Health.

The cases confirmed during the week ending Feb. 2 bring the total number of flu-related deaths for the season to 127.

Also during the week, 108 people were hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed influenza in Minnesota, bringing the season’s total to 2,612 people. The flu season officially started Oct. 1.

Health officials have called the current flu season in Minnesota severe, but not in ways that are unexpected. The flu season’s peak apparently has passed, according to the health department, with surges in deaths and hospitalizations occurring in the last week of December and first two weeks of January.