Health Ministry confirms record 663 deaths from Covid-19 in single day

Argentina’s Health Ministry recorded the highest daily death toll from Covid-19 on Wednesday, with 633 fatalities over the preceding 24 hours.

That was enough to surpass the previous record of 561 deaths, registered less than a week ago on April 29.

Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, 65,865 deaths have now been recorded in Argentina, a country with a population of around 45 million.

After two days of lowered infections, government officials also confirmed a renewed surge in confirmed cases, with 24,079 added to the national database on Wednesday. More than three million infections have been registered nationwide since last March.

According to a tally kept by the AFP news agency, Argentina’s mortality rate now stands at 1,422 per one million habitats. In Latin America, the country ranks fourth in the total number of deaths and sixth in the index per million. Worldwide, Argentina ranks 14th for fatalities and 30th in the rate per million inhabitants, while it is the 11th highest nation for total infections.

In mid-April, amid a second wave surge of infections, President Alberto Fernnández strengthened measures to reduce the circulation of people and lower the contagion curve. 

In the Buenos Aires metropolitan region (AMBA), where 15 million people live, high numbers of confirmed cases have been detected in recent weeks and there are few beds available in the intensive therapies of public hospitals and private clinics, according to reports.

According to data from the Health Ministry, bed occupancy in intensive care units (ICUs) stands at 68.2 percent nationwide, rising to 75.9 percent in the AMBA region. 

To date, some 7.36 million people in Argentina have received their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, while 1.16 million have been given both shots.

The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) warned Wednesday that hospitals in Latin America are "dangerously full," sounding the alarm over the recent  the rise in hospitalizations and deaths of young adults.

– TIMES/AFP