MADRID – Spain marks the seventh consecutive day with a record increase in numbers of Covid positives. The Autonomous Communities reported 161,688 new cases to the Ministry of Health on Thursday, of which 74,487 in the past 24 hours.
On Wednesday, 100,760 infections were reported. Covid in the country has grown by 60% in one day. Futhermore, the incidence increased by around 270 points in the past 24 hours and Spain has reported 74 new deaths.
It is also the highest number of positives recorded in one day in Spain. The total number of infections has now risen to 6,294,745 cases since the start of the pandemic.
Highest Cumulative Incidence Ever
Today’s cumulative incidence marked the highest spike on record in Spain since the onset of the health crisis, with 1,775.27 infections per 100,000 inhabitants in the past 14 days. In addition, Moreover, Wednesday’s maximum of 1,508.39 points has already been exceeded. The cumulative incidence of the sixth wave, marked by Omicron, has already far surpassed the peak of the fifth. The maximum then was on July 26 with 700 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Deaths
Thursday’s report added 74 new deaths. Since the virus arrived in Spain, up to 89,405 people with a positive diagnostic test have died. In the past week alone, 282 have died.
Most infections registered in Catalonia
Catalonia recorded the most infections in the past 24 hours with a total of 25,101 positives. That is the highest since the start of the pandemic. Meanwhile, the situation in hospitals is deteriorating, with 1,610 people admitted, 426 of whom are seriously ill in the ICU.
Unprecedented situation in Madrid
The Madrid region is also going through an unprecedented situation. Although self-diagnostic tests are not officially counted, this region reported a new record this Thursday with 21,364 cases. In addition, the peak of hospitalised patients has exceeded that of the fifth wave, with 1,538 patients hospitalised.
Increase in hospital admissions
Currently, 10,768 patients have been admitted to the ICU for Covid-19 (10,411 yesterday) and 1,803 in the ICU (1,773 yesterday) across Spain. In the last 24 hours, there were 1,662 admissions (1,727) and 1,323 new arrivals (1,239 yesterday). The occupancy rate of beds occupied by coronavirus stands at 8.81% (yesterday 8.51%) and in ICUs at 19.42% (19.1% yesterday).
Test Positivity Rate
The Autonomous Communities performed 2,413,264 diagnostic tests, of which 1,342,488 were PCR and 1,070,776 antigen tests, with a total percentage per 100,000 population of 5,131.74.
Meanwhile, the positivity rate stands at 20.5%, up from 20.4% yesterday. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends keeping this figure below 5 percent to consider the spread of the virus “under control.”
New Year’s Eve parties with restrictions
New Year’s Eve celebrations will be experienced differently in each of Spain’s 17 regions, as the communities can finalise their plans for these dates just a day before the end of 2021. These vary between the regions with the greatest explosion of new cases and those where the incidence is rising somewhat less rapidly. Consequently, 8 autonomous regions are applying stricter measures, such as curfews or the early closure of the catering industry. This is the case in Catalonia, Aragon, Asturias, Galicia, La Rioja, Murcia, Navarra and the Basque Country. And regions that do not impose a restrictive measure before the end of the year are Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura, and Castilla y León.
Covid certificate
Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Balearic Islands, Ceuta, Canary Islands, Melilla, Cantabria, Catalonia, Navarra, Basque Country, Valencian Community, Galicia, La Rioja and Murcia maintain the requirement of a Covid certificate to access certain areas such as catering establishments.
Related article: Shortage of corona self-tests
