Spain: Health authorities confirm over 400,000 COVID-19 cases August 24 /update 42

Event

On Monday, August 24, the Spanish health ministry reported an updated total of 405,436 confirmed coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in the country and 28,872 related deaths. The increase in the past weeks comes following a surge in infections that led to further restrictions being imposed across the country. Health authorities reported 2060 cases in the last 24 hours and a total of 24,000 cases of the virus have been confirmed in Madrid in the past two weeks. However, the daily number of cases in the country seems to be lowering in comparison to the previous week .

Spanish authorities advised Madrid residents to stay at home on Friday, August 21, due a rise in COVID-19 cases in the capital. The regional deputy health chief Antonio Zapatero advised residents to not go on trips and to avoid meetings that are not essential, especially those in Madrid's worst-affected areas.

On August 14, Spanish authorities ordered nightclubs to close and banned smoking in outdoor areas in establishments where social distancing is not possible. The government has also advised against gatherings of more than ten people and specifically urged young people to not meet outdoors to drink alcohol.

Further international spread of the virus is to be expected in the near term.

Context

The first case of COVID-19 was reported on December 31 and the source of the outbreak has been linked to a wet market in Wuhan (Hubei province, China). Since then, human-to-human transmission of the virus has been confirmed.

Cases of the virus have been confirmed in numerous countries and territories worldwide. On March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the global outbreak a pandemic. Virus-screening and quarantining measures are being implemented at airports worldwide, as well as extensive travel restrictions.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, dry cough, and tiredness. Some patients may experience other symptoms such as body pains, nasal congestion, headache, conjunctivitis, sore throat, diarrhea, loss of taste or smell or a rash on skin or discoloration of fingers or toes. These symptoms (in most cases mild) appear gradually. Generally, most patients (around 80 percent) recover from the disease without being hospitalized.

Advice

Measures adopted by local authorities evolve quickly and are usually effective immediately. Depending on the evolution of the outbreak in other countries, authorities are likely to modify, at very short notice, the list of countries whose travelers are subject to border control measures or entry restrictions upon their arrival to the territory in question. It is advised to postpone nonessential travel due to the risk that travelers may be refused entry or be subject to quarantine upon their arrival or during their stay.

To reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission, travelers are advised to abide by the following measures: