ARCHIVED - A new record of 94,000 cases over the weekend in Spain

Hospitals under extreme strain although the Ministry of Health believes the curve may be flattening off

The level of contagion associated with the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Spain continues to rise alarmingly and over the weekend of 23rd and 24th January the number of new cases diagnosed reached yet another new record high at 93,822, according to the Ministry of Health update published on Monday.

However, there are grounds for guarded optimism in that it appears that a peak is at last being reached after the surge in transmission of Covid which coincided with increased socialization and a partial relaxation of restrictions on travel over the Christmas and New Year holidays. In various of the 17 regions of Spain the 14-day accumulated incidence rates are reported to have fallen slightly, especially those where the highest figures have been reached, and this is the case for example in Extremadura (where the latest Ministry data specify a rate of 1,381 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over the last fortnight), Murcia (1,372), the Comunidad Valenciana (1,340) and Castilla y León (1,352).

At the other end of the scale, only in the Canary Islands (190) is the incidence rate below the threshold of 250 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, above which the situation is described as being of “extreme risk”, while the national average has risen to a new high of 884.

As things stand there have now been almost 2.6 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Spain since the first were reported almost a year ago, and after 767 more fatalities over the weekend the official Ministry death toll stands at 56,208 (although other statistics suggest that the “real” figure is closer to 80,000). Similarly, antibody testing surveys among the general population indicate that the actual number of infections since early last year could be approximately 6 million.

Hospitals under extreme strain
It may be that the numbers of new cases confirmed are beginning to level out, but at the same time the situation in hospitals all over the country continues to worsen. The proportion of hospital beds occupied by coronavirus patients has risen to 23.94 per cent and in intensive care units the figure is even higher at 40.38 per cent – and over 50 per cent in the regions of Castilla-La Mancha, the Comunidad Valenciana and La Rioja.

Not since the peak of the first wave last April has the pressure on hospitals and ICUs been so intense, and the likelihood is that it will continue rising for some time as some of the cases reported recently develop unfavourably. The situation is not as critical as in the spring, but in most regions outpatients’ appointments and non-essential surgery are being postponed.

In this context Fernando Simón, the Director of the Coordination Centre for Health Alerts and Emergencies, called upon regional governments to tighten the restrictions currently in place on movement and social gatherings, although the national government is still resolutely resisting calls for them to be empowered to bring forward the start of the night-time curfew or to confine citizens to their homes.

Sr Simón also warned that when the curve is eventually flattened out the drop in the number of new cases being reported will be more gradual than the dramatic rise which has marked the last month