Romania reported 73 Covid-19 deaths, a record number on Tuesday, and cases shot up again to over 2,000.
The Strategic Communication Group said there were 2,121 new SARS-CoV-2 cases in the past day, 500 more than Monday.
Some 23,476 tests were conducted giving a 9.01% ‘positivity rate,’ lower than Monday when one-fourth of tests had positive outcomes, and about the same as late last week.
A record 608 patients with the virus are being treated in intensive care units. There are about 8,100 patients being treated in Romanian hospitals.
The recent spike has caused alarm among authorities who are concerned about rising cases putting a strain on the healthcare system as the autumn approaches.
The government is debating whether to close restaurants in Bucharest where cases have soared and to ban religious festivals which take place in the coming weeks.
Bucharest added 403 cases on Tuesday, double last week’s figures but lower than Monday when more than 500 cases were registered. The northeast Iasi region which has seen a rise in cases posted 92 new infections. The Prahova Valley, another hotspot which is popular with tourists reported 96 new cases.
Four of the 73 Covid-19 related deaths on Tuesday were patients without underlying health problems.
Forty-four men and 29 women succumbed to the virus in the last day. Two patients were in their 40s, ten in their 50s, 15 were in their 60s, and the rest were over 70.
The cumulative total of cases climbed to 139,612. Of which almost 110,000 have recovered.
There are about 11,500 people in self-isolation and 7,800 in institutionalized isolation.
