Home » News » In October, more than a quarter of a million people in the Czech Republic became infected with coronavirus. On Saturday, more than 11,000 cases were added – ČT24 – Czech Television

In October, more than a quarter of a million people in the Czech Republic became infected with coronavirus. On Saturday, more than 11,000 cases were added – ČT24 – Czech Television

With Saturday, the number of tests performed has always decreased significantly since the spread of the covid-19 pandemic to the Czech Republic, and thus the number of those evaluated positively. The number of positive cases also decreased on the last day of October, compared to Friday there were about two thousand fewer cases. The Ministry of Health has not yet evaluated how many samples were taken on Saturday, but the situation should be different than in previous weeks, as some sampling points, which previously operated only on working days, remained open on weekends.

The decline that Saturday brought, but did not come throughout the country. A quarter fewer new cases compared to the previous Saturday are reported in Prague, where 934 tests were evaluated positively. On the other hand, in the Ústí nad Labem Region with 1,046 positive tests, the situation worsened compared to last week, as in the Liberec Region, where there were 637 more infected on Saturday – almost half as much as in the previous week.


The number of people in hospitals is still increasing. By Saturday evening, the number of filled beds had increased by about 400 compared to the previous day, despite the fact that hospitals had laid over 800 people home. In the evening, 1137 patients were in serious condition.

A quarter of a million a month

Already in September, the epidemic situation in the Czech Republic worsened significantly compared to previous months, which was reflected in the tightening of measures and the fact that neighboring countries began to require quarantine or the submission of a negative test upon arrival from the Czech Republic. However, in terms of the number of infected, hospitalized and dead, October surpassed everything that had happened in the country since March 1, when the first cases were confirmed.

Between 1 and 31 October, there were 264,334 people who tested for coronavirus. From March to September, there were a total of about 70,000 cases, of which 46,000 were in September. Over the next month, overall statistics increased fivefold. 188,492 people are still infected, which is significantly more than the people who have recovered so far – there were over 143,000 of them.

Even more dramatic is the increase in the number of people in the hospital and also infected with covid-19 who have died. Since October 21, more than a hundred people have died every day, and the infection has been confirmed. The worst day of the pandemic in the Czech Republic was Friday with 176 victims. According to data from the Ministry of Health, which, however, the office usually adds retrospectively, 3,251 people died by Saturday.

There are now 19,767 people in hospitals with covid-19,767, there were 1,134 on October 1, almost seven times less. As of September 1, hospital physicians were caring for 172 patients infected with coronavirus.


First Sunday with closed shops

There are a number of restrictions in the country announced by the government in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus. It is the first Sunday, when there is an almost complete ban on sales, only pharmacies and shops at railway stations or hospitals can be open. Ministers added one more exception before the weekend – because it is a All Saints’ Day weekend, stonemasons or sellers of reverential items may be open on Sundays, even at stalls where they may not be sold at all under the current measures.

Because train station supermarkets are the only ones that may be open on Sundays, queues are forming in some. In the morning, for example, it was in a self-service shop at Brno’s main railway station. “The saleswomen had to direct some people to go to the store gradually and one by one. According to the sellers, it is known that more people go than they do on Sundays. As a result, a large number of homeless people are gathering at the main railway station, “said Veronika Gecová, a Czech Television reporter.

On Saturday, on the other hand, people came to big stores in large numbers, according to some sellers, the interest was comparable to the pre-Christmas period. According to them, customers were stockpiling for the day when they would not be able to go shopping.

In addition to closed shops, there is a night curfew in the Czech Republic, from 9 pm to 5 am only those who need to work, or work outside at night, or those who need medical help are allowed outside. In addition, it is possible to go for walks during the day, but during the day there are restrictions on free movement and also a ban on drinking alcohol in public places. Restaurants can only have a service window open.

The state of emergency can last until Christmas, says Hamáček

The government will have to reapply for an extension of the state of emergency before 20 November, then perhaps several more times. The Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Central Crisis Staff, Jan Hamáček (CSSD), is convinced of this. In an interview in Václav Moravec’s Questions, he said that the measures that the state of emergency allowed the government to implement will apply until the daily increments of covid-19 infected hundreds, to a maximum of thousands, return.

“It is quite obvious that after November 20, this cannot be solved without a state of emergency,” says the head of the central crisis staff. He did not want to guess when the emergency could end. According to him, it will last “until the situation returns to ‘normal’.”

Hamáček assumes that the government will ask for an extension of the state of emergency several times. He admitted that it could last until Christmas. “From my point of view, it’s not a matter of days, but rather weeks or months,” he said.


The chairman of the CSSD also admitted that the government has lost public confidence since the spring. He confirmed his statement that he would support the establishment of a parliamentary commission of inquiry to examine the government’s action. Hamáček considers the commission to be beneficial for the future solution of the situation.

“When the Titanic sank, there were two commissions – one British, one American. The result was a drastic improvement in safety on the transatlantic routes, “said the Deputy Prime Minister.

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