Lebanon Sees Record COVID-19 Deaths for 2nd Straight Day

By Staff, Agencies

Lebanon registered a record number of coronavirus-related fatalities for the second consecutive day Wednesday with 89 deaths and 3,320 new cases.

The cases were detected among 15,976 tests. The positivity rate of the tests in the last two weeks stood at 21.8 percent.

Among the newly recorded cases, only 14 were detected among travelers arriving in Lebanon, according to the Health Ministry report, with the total number of cases since the virus was first detected in the country in late February rising to 309,162.

The Health Ministry said 2,365 patients were in hospital for COVID-19, with 940 in ICUs and 340 on ventilators.

Lebanon Tuesday registered a record 81 deaths and Wednesday set a new record with 89, bringing the total number of fatalities to 3,315.

With the current total lockdown due to expire in less than a week, authorities are set to meet Friday to discuss whether or not they will extend it or gradually reopen. Officials said the national coronavirus committee is headed toward slowly reopening the country to appease business owners and people who rely on income from daily work.

While daily cases have started to decline, fatalities and the positivity rate remains high. The World Health Organization in Lebanon reported Tuesday that ICU occupancy at hospitals was full in Beirut and over 90 percent in the rest of the country.