The Czech Republic yesterday reported its biggest single-day increase in new COVID-19 infections for a third straight day, recording 1,541 cases as the country battles a surge in the virus.
It was the fifth day in a row with new infections above 1,000 for the country of 10.7 million after cases began to accelerate last month.
Adjusted for population, the country has reported 94 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over the past 14 days, according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control data. Only Spain and France have seen a bigger spike in that time.
Photo: EPA-EFE
The Czech Republic came through an initial outbreak that began in March relatively well compared with western European neighbors and has kept the death toll lower than most peers.
As of Saturday, 453 patients had died out of a total 35,401 cases, with 60 percent of patients having recovered.
The country was one of the first in Europe to mandate wearing masks, shut schools and retail businesses, and restricted travel to contain the spread of the virus.
However, it was also quick to ease measures going into the summer months and aims to avoid repeating the harsh lockdowns that helped lead to a record 11 percent year-on-year contraction in the economy in the second quarter.
Last week, it tightened rules for mask use across the country to fight the rise in cases.
The Czech Republic did not report its 10,000th case until the middle of June and its 20,000th case until the middle of last month before quickly surpassing 30,000 cases this past week.
The uptick in infections led Germany to announce on Wednesday that it would require travelers from the Czech capital, Prague, to provide a negative COVID-19 test or observe a two-week quarantine period upon entry.
Amid the spike, the Czech government has said hospitalizations remain below peaks of more than 400 seen in the first few months of the outbreak, although figures are growing quickly, with 297 patients hospitalized as of Friday, up from 172 at the start of this month.
On Saturday, France reported more than 10,000 new coronavirus cases, the largest daily increase since the end of the country’s lockdown in May, a day after French Prime Minister Jean Castex warned of a “clear worsening” in the spread of the virus.
Cases rose by 10,561 over 24 hours, according to data from the public health agency published online. The seven-day rolling average stands at 8,029 and has been steadily climbing for almost four weeks.
The French government is trying to avoid another national lockdown, and people would have to live with the virus and be vigilant about sticking to precautions, Castex said in a speech on Friday.
Jean-Francois Delfraissy, who heads the scientific council advising French President Emmanuel Macron’s government, on Friday said that people need to “regain control” of their behavior again after not adhering to virus rules as strictly as necessary over the summer.
The UK on Saturday reported 3,497 new COVID-19 cases, a second day with more than 3,000 new cases, as new infections hover at levels not seen since late May. Nine new fatalities were also reported.
Italy reported 1,501 new cases, compared with 1,616 the previous day. There were six additional deaths.
Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban plans to keep all business sectors ranging from sports and culture to tourism up and running, despite a surge in COVID-19 infections.
US deaths related to COVID-19 increased by 1,215 on Friday, making it the deadliest day since Aug. 26, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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