Bangladesh readies to lift shutdown while Covid-19 cases keep climbing
With only two days remaining before the shutdown ends, Bangladesh today registered a record spike of 2,523 new Covid-19 cases, its highest single-day jump till date.
The total number of coronavirus infection rises to 42,844 in the country with this.
Some 11,301 samples were tested in 49 labs across the country in the last 24 hours.
Besides, twenty-three more deaths from the virus were reported today. Of them, 19 are male and four female, and 10 of them are from Dhaka division, 9 from Chattogram and two from Rangpur and one each from Barishal and Sylhet. The death toll due to the highly infectious disease now stands at 582.
"The death rate from Covid-19 infections is 1.36 percent, and infection rate is 22.33 percent, while the recovery rate is 21.04 percent," Additional Director General of Health Directorate Professor Dr Nasima Sultana made the disclosure during a virtual briefing today.
"12,982 samples were collected during last 24 hours and 11,301 were tested. A total of 2,87,067 samples have been tested so far," she added.
Some 590 patients have recovered from the virus during this time, increasing the total cured patients to 9,015.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to conditionally lift the nationwide shutdown from Sunday, granting road transport, water transport and rail to operate with a limited number of passengers while ensuring health guidelines.
The national technical advisory committee to check Covid-19 also said yesterday that the number of patients will increase extensively and health sector will be under immense pressure if the rules, guidelines and restrictions, issued to contain the spread of coronavirus, are eased instead of imposing those properly.
Currently, 60,275 people are quarantined across the country – including 4,900 newly-quarantined individuals. 2,918 people got released from quarantine in the last 24 hours.
Nasima Sultana said, "The authorities placed 328 new individuals suspected of having Covid-19 into isolation and 172 people were released from isolation units in the last 24 hours. Currently, 5,140 are staying in isolation units across the country."
"The country is capable of accommodating 13,284 people at different isolation wards and 31,840 people at 626 institutional quarantine facilities," she added.
Moreover, there are 399 ICU facilities and 106 dialysis beds available for the treatment of coronavirus infected patients in the country.
As many as 83,65,433 hotline health services were given by 16,211 trained and 4,217 volunteer doctors via three designated numbers, including 1,76,257 in last 24-hour till 8am today.
Till date, a total of 6,99,510 thermal screenings were conducted at different ports, including, 159 at seaports and 252 at land ports in the last 24 hours.
15,265 Personal protective equipment (PPE) collected in the last 24 hours. So far, 2,470,002 PPE's has been collected by the government of which 21,04,534 were distributed and 3,65,468 are left in store
Globally, The virus has killed 362,365 people and infected 5,920,231 so far.
