Bangladesh has crossed the 2,000 mark in deaths from coronavirus infection as 55 more people, including a child, die of the deadly virus in the last 24 hours.
With the latest figure, the number of total fatalities rose to 2,052.
Meanwhile, the country has logged over 162,000 Covid-19 cases with 2,738 people testing positive over the same period.
With this development, the number of total confirmed cases jumped to 162,417.
Additional Director General (Administration) of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Prof Nasima Sultana, revealed the latest figures from Dhaka on Sunday afternoon, in the daily online bulletin on the Covid-19 situation.
She also said that 1,904 people recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours.
So far, a total of 72,625 patients — 44.72% of all infected — have made full recovery across the country, since the first Covid-19 cases were recorded on March 8.
Fatality rate 1.26%
Prof Nasima said of the 55 deceased – 37 men and 18 women – 19 were from Dhaka division, 13 from Chittagong, 8 from Rangpur, 6 from Khulna, 5 from Barisal, 2 from Sylhet, and 1 each from Rajshahi and Mymensingh divisions.
Of the victims, 41 died in different hospitals and 14 at home, she said.
She said one of the deceased was below 10, three between 31 and 40, seven between 41 and 50 years of age, 13 between 51 and 60, nine in their 61 and 70, and 12 between 71 and 80.
So far, 1,624 men (79.14%) and 428 women (20.86%) have died from the deadly virus across the country, she said.
She added that the mortality rate was 1.26% against the total cases so far detected.
As per government data, individuals who are 60-year-old and above are the most vulnerable to Covid-19.
19.57% test positive in 24hrs
The DGHS official said as many as 13,965 samples were collected from suspected Covid-19 patients in the last 24 hours.
As many as 13,988 samples, including the pending ones, were tested in 68 authorized labs (out of 73) -- government and private -- across the country.
With 2,738 of the tests coming back positive, the detection rate of new patients in the last 24 hours stood at 19.57%, she said.
The test positivity percentage was 22.33% on Saturday. It reached an all-time high on June 18, with 23.39% of the total number of samples tested in a day coming back positive.
Till date, no fewer than 846,062 tests have been conducted in the country, leading to a whopping 19.20% infection rate as of yet.
Covid-19 dedicated hospitals
The dedicated hospitals in Dhaka city have 6,075 general and 149 ICU (Intensive Care Unit) beds. Other dedicated hospitals across the country have 14,475 general and 401 ICU beds in total.
Across the country, 7,113 general and 355 ICU beds are occupied. In the last 24 hours, 717 patients were admitted and 764 were released from the hospitals.
“Besides, a total of 11,785 oxygen cylinders are currently in use across Bangladesh,” she said.
Everyone can call the numbers – 01313791130, 01313791138-40 – to get any information regarding the hospitals, she added.
‘Breastfeeding doesn’t spread Covid-19’
“Coronavirus doesn’t spread when a mother breastfeeds her child,” said Prof Nasima Sultana.
She also suggested all to have a balanced and nutritious diet with fresh vegetables, fruits, corn, pulses, beans, and different meats to keep themselves healthy amid the pandemic.
“According to WHO, coronavirus doesn’t spread through food. But to prevent waterborne diseases there are certain hygiene rules that we should maintain,” she added.
Looking back
On March 8, health authorities in Bangladesh reported the first three cases of Covid-19, a severe acute respiratory illness caused by a new coronavirus strain which was later named Sars-CoV-2.
The country recorded its first fatality on March 18.
On June 10, Covid-19 deaths in Bangladesh crossed the 1,000 mark, and on June 18, the number of total cases crossed the 100,000 mark.
On June 30, the country recorded 64 deaths, which is the highest in a 24-hour span till now.
On July 2, a total of 4,019 positive cases were recorded, which was the highest in a single day till now.
The novel coronavirus had broken out in China's Wuhan city in late December last year and quickly spread throughout the world, becoming a pandemic in less than three months.
The fast-spreading coronavirus has claimed 534,000 lives and infected 11,411,000 people across the world till 4pm on Sunday, according to Worldometer.
As many as 6,461,000 people have recovered from Covid-19 which has spread to 213 countries and territories across the planet.
