As many as 16 Covid-19 patients have died in the past 24 hours at Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH), health officials said on Friday.
This is the highest single-day death toll recorded in the hospital to date, reports UNB.
Hospital Director Brigadier General Shamim Yazdani said that of the deceased, 10 were Covid-19 positive patients while other six others showed symptoms of the virus.
Of the deceased, nine were from Chapainawabganj district, six from Rajshahi, and one was from Naogaon district, according to the hospital authorities.
With the fresh deaths, the district's fatality count has reached 93 people since May 24. Of them, 56 were confirmed Covid patients.
In the past 24 hours, some 32 people have been admitted to the hospital with Covid-19 symptoms. Of them, 15 patients are from Chapainawabganj, 13 from Rajshahi district, three from Pabna, and one from Natore district, said hospital sources.
It may be mentioned there that authorities in some districts, including Rajshahi, have already imposed strict restrictions for a week to contain the spread of coronavirus.
This was after the government recently empowered the district authorities to take a call on lockdown restrictions in their respective areas.
Rajshahi Deputy Commissioner Abdul Jalil announced the restrictions on Wednesday afternoon. No one will be allowed to step out of the house from 7:00 pm to 6:00 am in Rajshahi until June 9 unless there's an emergency.
All business establishments will remain shut and no vehicles are allowed to ply on the roads except those providing emergency services. However, restaurants and traders can provide their services online.
On May 31, Bangladesh Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said, “District administrations have been given the power to enforce lockdown in their respective areas if the Covid situation worsens there.”
Due to the recent rise in Covid infections in the districts bordering India, district administrations have imposed lockdowns in Khulna, Satkhira and parts of Naogaon districts too.
Situation in Bangladesh
Bangladesh on Thursday recorded 30 new coronavirus-related deaths and some 1,687 fresh cases in 24 hours.
Health authorities detected the new cases after testing 16,982 samples during the period. The number of tests has also increased over the past one week.
With the new cases, the country's total caseload has risen to 8,05,980, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The new deaths have pushed up the fatality count to 12,724.
Bangladesh reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on the 18th of that month.