Intubations and deaths have stabilized, says expert
The number of intubations and deaths is stabilizing after five weeks of lockdown but the viral load remains high, a member of the experts committee advising the government said on Friday during a daily briefing presenting developments with the pandemic.
“There is finally stabilization in the hardest indicators of the pandemic – the daily intubations and deaths,” said Vana Papaevangelou, who is also a professor of pediatric infectious diseases at Athens University.
Papaevangelou said the average number of new cases in the country is 1,500 per day.
“The efforts have paid off and the restrictive measures are starting to pay off,” she continued, adding that “if we continue at the same pace we will see 300 intubated people nationwide at Christmas.”
She warned, however, against any complacency noting that the large number of active cases in the country, which in Central Macedonia alone exceed 6,000, was the reason why the expert committee advised the government to opt for a conservative reopening of the market ahead of Christmas.
Thessaloniki remained the region with the highest number of new infections with 357 cases, followed by Attica with 296. Serres and Magnesia were also burdened with 80 and 65 cases, respectively.
In the same briefing, Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias said that west Attica had 392 active cases.
“The epidemiological situation remains difficult, [so] the holidays will be different,” he said.
