The COVID-19 situation appears to be relatively stable and on a downward trend, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said yesterday, as he reported 185 domestic COVID-19 cases and 15 deaths.
“This seems to be a relatively good sign,” Chen, who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), told a daily news briefing.
In Taipei and New Taipei City, the overall situation seems to be heading in a good direction, he added.
Photo: CNA
He attributed it to public efforts to control the spread of the virus, but warned people against letting their guard down.
Of the new local cases, 83 are males and 102 are females, from younger than five to older than 90, the center said.
The onset of their symptoms was between May 28 and Sunday, it said.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
New Taipei City had the most local infections, with 98 cases, followed by 42 in Taipei, it said.
Keelung had 14 cases, Taoyuan had 10, Miaoli County had seven, Hualien County had four, Changhua and Hsinchu counties reported three cases each, Yilan County recorded two cases, and Taichung and Yunlin County each had one case, it said.
Of the 45 domestic cases reported outside Taipei and New Taipei City, 37 had known sources of infection, five had unclear connections with other cases and three were under investigation, it said.
The 15 deaths were nine men and six women in their 50s to 90s, the center said, adding that only one of them did not have a chronic health condition.
They experienced an onset of symptoms between May 10 and Tuesday last week. They were confirmed to have COVID-19 between May 18 and Sunday, and died between June 5 and Sunday, the center said.
Of the 11,547 confirmed COVID-19 cases recorded from May 11 to Saturday, 5,802 people, or 50.2 percent, have been released from isolation, the center said.
The nation on June 4 recorded the highest number of patients being treated in hospital rooms dedicated to people with COVID-19, at 2,539 patients, said Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), deputy chief of the CECC’s medical response division.
The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has been on a downward trend since that peak, he added.
As of yesterday morning, the number of people being treated in dedicated COVID-19 rooms across the nation had fallen 14 percent from the peak to 2,198, Lo said.
The number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care peaked at 435 on June 7, he said.
That figure has also continued to decline over the past week, he said.
As of yesterday, 389 COVID-19 patients nationwide were in intensive care, he said.
Meanwhile, as the nation prepares to expand vaccinations to more priority groups starting today, Chen urged people to show their support to local disease control personnel.
People lining up for COVID-19 vaccinations should maintain social distancing and wear a mask, he said.
PROVOCATIVE: Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the UN Sun Lei accused Japan of sending military vessels to deliberately provoke tensions in the Taiwan Strait China denounced remarks by Japan and the EU about the South China Sea at a UN Security Council meeting on Monday, and accused Tokyo of provocative behavior in the Taiwan Strait and planning military expansion. Ayano Kunimitsu, a Japanese vice foreign minister, told the Council meeting on maritime security that Tokyo was seriously concerned about the situation in the East China and South China seas, and reiterated Japan’s opposition to any attempt to change the “status quo” by force, and obstruction of freedom of navigation and overflight. Stavros Lambrinidis, head of the EU delegation to the UN, also highlighted South China Sea
The final batch of 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks purchased from the US arrived at Taipei Port last night and were transported to the Armor Training Command in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口), completing the military’s multi-year procurement of 108 of the tanks. Starting at 12:10am today, reporters observed more than a dozen civilian flatbed trailers departing from Taipei Port, each carrying an M1A2T tank covered with black waterproof tarps. Escorted by military vehicles, the convoy traveled via the West Coast Expressway to the Armor Training Command, with police implementing traffic control. The army operates about 1,000 tanks, including CM-11 Brave Tiger
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it expects its 2-nanometer (2nm) chip capacity to grow at a compound annual rate of 70 percent from this year to 2028. The projection comes as five fabs begin volume production of 2-nanometer chips this year — two in Hsinchu and three in Kaohsiung — TSMC senior vice president and deputy cochief operating officer Cliff Hou (侯永清) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Silicon Valley, California, last week. Output in the first year of 2-nanometer production, which began in the fourth quarter of last year, is expected to
Taiwan’s drone exports surged past US$100 million in the first quarter, exceeding last year’s full-year total, with the Czech Republic emerging as the largest buyer, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. Exports of complete drones reached US$115.85 million in the period, about 1.2 times the total recorded for all of last year, the ministry said in a report. Exports to the Czech Republic accounted for about US$100 million, far outpacing other markets. Poland, last year’s top destination, recorded about US$11.75 million in the first quarter. Taiwan’s drone exports have expanded rapidly in the past few years, with last year’s total
RSS