Notwithstanding the lockdown restrictions, the frontier district of Rajshahi is witnessing a surge in Covid-19 deaths with each passing day.
Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH) on Wednesday morning recorded 16 new Covid-19-related deaths in the previous 24 hours.
Of them, eight had tested positive for Covid-19, while the remaining showed symptoms of the disease, said the hospital’s Director Brig Gen Shamim Yeazdani.
Of the deceased, eight were from the Rajshahi district, three from Chapainawabganj, two each from Natore and Naogaon, and one was from Jhenaidah.
Meanwhile, the infection rate has further decreased in Rajshahi. On Tuesday, 457 samples were tested at two laboratories of the district and 151 of those came back positive, yielding an infection rate of 33.05%.
The rate was 33.51% on Monday and 43.19% on Sunday.
Officials said that 245 Covid-19 patients died at the RMCH corona unit over the last 23 days.
Brig Gen Yeazdani said that 60 people were admitted to the hospital in the 24 hours till Wednesday morning.
Of them, 44 people were from Rajshahi, six from Chapainawabganj, two from Natore, five from Naogaon, two from Pabna, and one from Jhenaidah.
Some 42 people also left the hospital during the same period after recovering from the disease.
Besides, 410 people were currently undergoing treatment against 357 beds at the corona unit. The authorities had opened a 48-bed facility equipped with a centralized oxygen supply on Tuesday.
Of the total patients, 20 people were undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Unit.
Authorities on June 17 had extended the ongoing lockdown, aimed to curb the spread of Covid-19, in Rajshahi by one more week. It will now end at Thursday midnight.
768 dead in the division
Meanwhile, according to official data, with 18 more fatalities from the disease reported on Tuesday, the death toll in all eight districts of the Rajshahi Division reached 768.
Of the total, 355 died in Bogra and 131 in Rajshahi with 76 in its city, said Dr Habibul Ahsan Talukder, the divisional director of health, reports BSS.
A total of 847 people also tested positive for Covid-19 in all eight districts on Tuesday, raising the number of infections to 49,666.
Among the infected people, 36,090 have so far recovered with 255 new recoveries recorded on Tuesday.
A total of 4,992 infected patients are now undergoing treatment at different designated hospitals in the division.
Of the total positive cases, as of Tuesday, the highest 352 were detected in Rajshahi district, including 298 in its city, followed by 111 in Chapainawabganj, 102 in Natore, 88 in Pabna, 62 in Bogra, 53 in Naogaon, 48 in Joypurhat, and 31 in Sirajganj.
With these patients, the district-wise break-up of the total cases now stands at 15,218 in Rajshahi, 3,768 in Chapainawabganj, 3,770 in Naogaon, 2,999 in Natore, 2,979 in Joypurhat, 13,054 in Bogra, 4,090 in Sirajganj, and 3,788 in Pabna.
