Fast-tracking to become a second Italy..?
Coronavirus Deaths Soar in Spain, 1,350 Dead and 25,000 Infected
The coronavirus has claimed the lives of over thirteen hundred people in Spain, but the country’s Health Minister says “the worst days are on their way”.
As of Saturday, the number of confirmed cases of Chinese coronavirus in Spain has reached nearly 25,000, with 1,350 people dying from the killer virus. Spain now only trails behind China and Italy in the number of people infected.
Madrid, the epicentre of the outbreak in the country, has been the hardest hit, with 176 people dying in a 24-hour span and 804 overall deaths since the virus reached Spanish shores.
The government has taken over the Ifema convention centre, converting into a temporary field hospital that will be able to up to house 5,500 patients. Two hotels in the city have also been converted into makeshift hospitals to hold patients displaying mild symptoms of the coronavirus, El Pais reports.
On Friday, Spanish Health Minister Salvador Illa warned that “the worst days are on their way” despite the nation-wide lockdown enacted by the government.
Fernando Simón, the director of the Health Ministry’s Co-ordination Center for Health Alerts, admitted that “it is very likely” that the rate of infection in Spain is much higher than the reported numbers, as testing kits have been in short supply.
Rapid test kits were supposed to made available by the end of this week, however, the Health Ministry has refused to report how many tests are available, only saying that they will be available “in the coming days”.
