"We have 44 new confirmed positive coronavirus test results. Altogether the number of cases in Poland has gone up to 536, of which 5 people have died" - the Ministry of Health informed on Saturday evening.
In total, on Saturday, the health ministry confirmed 111 new coronavirus infections.
The ministry also informed that there were 54814 people taken under quarantine as of Saturday afternoon, 1047 were hospitalised, 74106 were reported for quarantine upon returning to Poland, and 56623 were under epidemiological supervision.
President of Poland Andrzej Duda called a meeting of the National Security Council (RBN) on Monday noon.
State of epidemic
On Friday, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced the state of epidemic on the territory of Poland.
"We are today introducing a state of epidemic...which gives us new prerogatives but also gives us new responsibilities. We have decided to cancel lessons until Easter. It is a difficult but important decision," he told a Friday news conference.
Poland had cancelled classes for students earlier this month until March 25 and shut its borders to foreigners in an effort to curtail the spread of the virus. It also shuttered museums, theaters and cinemas and limited public gatherings to no more than 50 people. In response to a question on whether the May 10 presidential elections would be called off as a result of the change to a state of epidemic, Morawiecki said, "No, it doesn't mean elections at a later date." Multiple opposition candidates have called for the election to be officially postponed as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
Community support for medics
Robert Wagner, a community activist in the Polish city of Wrocław, says delivering coffee and packed lunches to hard-pressed doctors and paramedics is the least he can do as coronavirus spreads across the country. In Poland medical staff are working overtime to treat the increasing number of coronavirus patients, and community groups are mobilising to help. "We're trying to support medical professionals in Wrocław, paramedics, emergency departments and infections ward employees as much as we can... we provide them a so-called packed lunch... so that they can work somehow," Wagner told Reuters. Other volunteers are rallying to assist elderly people and those with underlying health conditions who are staying at home for fear of becoming infected. Joanna Cieślik, the owner of Restaurant Bistro 8 1/2 in Wrocław, has dedicated her kitchen to providing free meals to elderly, sick and homeless people in the city. "The situation is not easy, but we try to find a positive side. We decided to help as much as we can," said Cieślik, whose restaurant is only open for take-out meals due to government restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of the virus. Creating a Facebook group called "Visible Hand", school teacher Marta Listwan said she wanted to set up a platform for public-spirited residents to provide everyday services to those affected by the outbreak -- from picking up medicine from the pharmacy to walking the dog. "I created this group for my friends and friends of friends, hoping that as many as sixty people will appear," she said. Over 17,000 appeared."
Autorka/Autor: gf
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, PAP, Reuters