Covid-19 deaths jump beyond 60

For the last 15 days, the daily death toll from Covid-19 stayed below 50. 

Suddenly, the casualty figure crossed that line as the country recorded the highest single-day – 64 – Covid-19 deaths and 3,682 new cases in the last 24 hours ending at 12pm on Tuesday.  

Fifty-one patients died at different hospitals which is 80 percent of the latest death toll.

Professor Shahnila Ferdousi, director of disease control at the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), spoke to the Business Standard about the sudden jump in the daily death figure and death of many Covid-19 patients at hospitals.

Professor Shahnila said although the figure is shocking, it is hard to say why a large number of people died in a single day. 

"I cannot explain the reason behind such a high death toll before reviewing if the patients had reached the hospital late or had co-morbidities."

"The virus attacks the respiratory system leaving a person in a critical condition all of a sudden," Professor Shahnila added. 

However, health experts say that poor infrastructure and faulty diagnosis are the causes of the high death rate. 

Professor Nazrul Islam, noted virologist and a member of the government's technical advisory committee on Covid-19 prevention, told The Business Standard that faulty treatment system at hospitals is the reason behind the high fatality. 

"The hospitals are yet to manage a high-flow oxygen system and the crisis of intensive care units (ICUs) are still there." 

Professor Nazrul said the death toll would increase if we fail to improve the hospital management as the infection is rising daily. 

Meanwhile, the death toll from the virus rose to 1,847 and infections to 145,483, Additional Director General of the DGHS Professor Dr Nasima Sultana said during an online briefing on Tuesday.

"New cases were detected after testing 18,426 samples in 66 labs across the country." 

Of the deceased, 52 were men and 12 women. 

Thirty-one of them were from Dhaka division, 13 from Chattogram, seven each from Rajshahi and Khulna, two each from Sylhet, Barishal and Mymensingh, Dr Nasima said.

Around 40.98 percent of the Covid-19 patients – both symptomatic and asymptomatic – have recovered in Bangladesh so far, while 1.27 percent have died. 

The daily infection rate stood at 19.98 percent on Tuesday.

However, against the total tests conducted since March 8, the infection rate in the country now stands at 18.98 percent.