Poland reports new record of daily coronavirus-related deaths

WARSAW: Poland reported a daily record of 58 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday, the Health Ministry said on Twitter, as data showed sharp increases in the number of ventilators and hospital beds being used by COVID-19 patients.

The country reported 2,236 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, close to Saturday's record of 2,367.

Poland, which has a population of 38 million, has reported 104,316 cases overall and 2,717 deaths, much lower than many other European countries.

The ministry said that as of Tuesday there were 263 ventilators and 3,719 hospital beds devoted to COVID-19 patients, compared with 141 and 2,399 respectively a week ago.

"More and more people are sent for hospital treatment, but also more and more people go to intensive care units, because they require treatment with a ventilator. This is very disturbing," Deputy Heath Minister Waldemar Kraska told private television broadcaster Polsat News.

Commenting on media reports that Poland is running out of COVID-19 drug remdesivir, Kraska said that some hospitals did not have it.

The health ministry plans to increase the number of hospital beds for COVID patients and is expected to announce changes to the regulations over wearing face masks.

Poland introduced strict lockdown measures quickly during the early stages of the pandemic, but the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party has said it wants to avoid another economically damaging lockdown and has introduced targeted measures in the worst affected places.

Poland was at first successful in containing the outbreak, but it lifted most restrictions in May and cases began rising in the summer as people travelled for vacations and attended large events like weddings.

Schools and kindergartens reopened on Sept. 1.

While the county's industrial south had previously been the worst affected region, with large outbreaks among coal miners, central and northern Poland have also seen spiralling infection rates in recent weeks.

The biggest spike in new cases on Tuesday was reported in central Poland, increasing the risk for Warsaw to face stricter restrictions.