Fears of a second wave as Italy records 1,000 Covid cases in 24 hours in the worst daily figure since lockdown restrictions were lifted in May
- Italy registered 1,071 new cases and a further three deaths in just 24 hours
- It is the first time crossing the threshold of 1,000 infections since May 12
- Officials in Rome said the capital region alone recorded 215 daily infections
Fears of a second coronavirus wave in Italy grow after the country recorded the worst daily rise in new infections since lockdown restrictions were lifted in May.
The country registered 1,071 new cases and a further three deaths in just 24 hours, the health ministry reported earlier today.
It is the first time crossing the threshold of 1,000 infections since May 12.
Officials in Rome said the capital region alone recorded 215 daily infections due to people returning from holiday.
It comes after the country saw a relentless uptick in cases over the past few days, from 947 on Friday, 845 on Thursday and 642 on Wednesday.
The figure of 215 for Rome is a record, more than the 208 people were infected in a one-day period on March 28, when Rome had come to a virtual standstill to stop the coronavirus spreading, the capital’s health official Alessio D’Amato said.
‘Sixty-one per cent (of the cases) are linked to people returning from vacation,’ D’Amato said, almost half the cases were returning from the island of Sardinia.
Sardinia had been spared the first wave earlier this year but D’Amato said the movement of tourists and people partying had helped spread the virus.
Fears of a second coronavirus wave in Italy grow after the country recorded the worst daily rise in new infections since lockdown restrictions were lifted in May (tourists pictured in the capital earlier today)
Francesco Vaia, director of Rome’s Spallanzani Hospital specialising in infectious diseases, told Italian media ‘the solution is to do tests on departing boats, planes and trains. This is the only way to prevent the virus spreading’.
D’Amato said most of those infected were young people who were not showing symptoms and it was urgent to ‘block the chain of transmission as fast as possible by finding the asymptomatic and averting the spread of the virus among families.
‘Be very careful especially with your relatives and the people dearest to you,’ he said in an appeal to the young.
He warned them to stay at home and not meet up with people while awaiting test results. ‘Don’t feel invincible,’ he urged them.
Officials in Rome said the capital region alone recorded 215 daily infections due to people returning from holiday (tourists, some wearing face masks, pictured in Rome today)
Italy – particularly the northern Lombardy region, the Venice area and Rome – are seeing a resurgence in the virus over the summer.
The Italian government has taken several steps to block the spread, such as closing nightclubs since August 17 and making mask wearing compulsory in busy public spaces between 6 pm and 6 am.
Since the pandemic erupted, Italy has recorded more than 257,000 cases, including more than 35,000 dead.