266 new people have died from the consequences of the new coronavirus (Covid-19) in Belgium, confirmed the Federal Public Health Service during a press conference on Wednesday.
Of the newly-reported deaths in the last 24 hours, 118 occurred in Flanders, 109 in Wallonia, and 39 in Brussels. The total number of deaths in Belgium since the beginning of the pandemic is currently 6,262.
87 occurred in hospitals, and were confirmed cases. 178 of the deaths were reported by the residential care centres, of which 13% were confirmed by a test, according to official figures.
“Of the total number of deaths, 46% occurred in hospitals, and 52% in residential care centres,” said inter-federal Covid-19 spokesperson Steven Van Gucht. Of the deaths in the care centres, 4.5% have been confirmed infected, the others are suspected.
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"Even though we are still reporting a lot of deaths, we want to note that the peak is behind us, and likely fell around 12 April," Van Gucht said. "The deaths in the residential care centres are sometimes reported with a few days delay, sometimes even going as far back as a week. This explains that the peak is behind us, despite the high number being reported today," he added.
Additionally, the number of patients in hospital because of the coronavirus is decreasing further. On Wednesday, a total of 4,765 patients were admitted, which is a decrease of 231 patients compared to the day before.
In total, Belgium has reported 41,889 confirmed cases since the beginning of the pandemic. The total reflects all people in Belgium who have been infected, and includes confirmed active cases as well as patients who have since recovered, or died from the consequences of the virus.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
