Romania is still heading towards the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, and authorities have been repeatedly warning citizens these past few days that much now depends on how people comply with social distancing measures on Labor Day and the weekend to come.
“The infection rate is on a slightly ascending slope, which is a good thing; nevertheless, we will have a few anxious days to come due to the May 1 mini-vacation. If people go to the beach, outdoor barbecues, and parties, then on May 15 we will face an increased number of coronavirus cases,” Romanian Minister of Internal Affairs Marcel Vela warned. Furthermore, if the infection rate increases in the country, the planned easing of restrictive measures will not happen, he added.
According to the data published by the Strategic Communication Group, as of Thursday, 12,240 coronavirus cases had been diagnosed in Romania, 711 people had succumbed to the disease inside the country, and 88 Romanian citizens had passed away abroad. The number of those who have fully recovered from COVID-19 so far is 4,017. As of Thursday, 221 patients were being treated in intensive care units, 12 053 people were in quarantine, and another 22,229 were in home isolation.
The president of the Romanian Microbiological Society, Alexandru Rafila, is of the opinion that the real number of coronavirus cases is unknown: Many more people may have been infected but showed no symptoms so were not tested. Rafila believes that the real number of those infected might be ten times higher, so around 120,000 people.
On a worldwide scale, more than 3.2 million people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus infection – 1 million of which are in the United States. The number of worldwide deaths reported now stands at 231,000. As summarized by the ziare.com news portal, more Americans have died from the virus over the past two months of the pandemic than during the two decades of war with Vietnam.
Title image: May 1 has been traditionally a picnic day for families and friends – not a good idea at the moment
Source: Kolozsvári Magyar Ifjúsági Fórum/Facebook – Kolozsvári Majális
