Spain passed another milestone on Thursday after they reported more than 10,000 deaths because of the coronavirus outbreaks. The Health Ministry said it recorded 950 new deaths in 24 hours, which is the highest single-day increase that Spain has seen so far. The total death tally of the country is now 10,003, joining Italy as the only country to report a five-figure death toll.
However, there was cause for muted optimism in the country, whose outbreak is slowing. As the death figure rises, the rate of new infections in Spain has fallen to its lowest rate since the start of the pandemic. An increase of 3,056 cases was reported in the past day, just a 4.3% jump and an improvement on the grim situation in Spain during mid-March.
Officials said that the data shows that the country's curve cases are coming under control and that the drastic emergency measures put in place to lock down the country are working.
Spain's total death count
The Health Minister Salvador Illa said that the data shows that Spain's curve has stabilized. The country has achieved the primary objective of reaching the peak of the curve and that now they are starting the phase of deceleration.
As a measure of the speed of the country's outbreak, the death toll now lags behind new infections. The stark 10.5% rise in fatalities Spain reported on April 2 is similar to April 1's increase, and smaller in percentage terms than any recorded in the past two weeks. There was also a smaller increase in new patients admitted into intensive care units, with 220 admissions in the past day.
The government of Spain was criticized after health workers and unions reported shortages of ICU facilities, lack of sufficient personal protective gear and overstretched health workers. A second makeshift morgue opened earlier this week in Madrid, and a conference center was converted into an emergency hospital and an ice rink was converted into a morgue.
Illa warned that Spain's health service remains under strain. He said that even though there is a decrease in the number of admissions, the long stays in the units create an effect of accumulation of patients because there still remains difficult weeks for their health system.
Officials have indicated that Spain's lockdown measures have helped decrease the number of people infected. The total number of cases in Spain is at 124,736, with 34,219 recovered cases. Spain is still on lockdown and the government is still forcing people to stay at home until the decline in new cases continues.
The current state of Spain
One of the world's worst-hit countries is Spain, just behind Italy and the United States. The streets of Madrid have been empty for weeks as locals have been instructed to stay home. Meanwhile, Spaniards continue to adjust to the economic impact of the pandemic.
Spain registered an increase in unemployment of 302,265 people in March compared to February, according to the Spanish Labor Ministry data that was released on April 2, 2020.
The increase in unemployment represents the largest monthly rise since the records began. According to Labor Minister Yolanda Diaz, the increase in unemployment is historic. The worst-affected sector as tourism and services, with over 200,000 jobless claims. The total unemployment number is 3,548,312 since the pandemic started.
