Barishal division sees highest daily deaths

The Barishal division  has seen the highest number of deaths and infections in the last 24 hours till yesterday morning.

A total of 32 people died in the division yesterday. Of them, 15 were Covid positive and 17 had symptoms, said Dr Shyamal Krishna Mandal, assistant director of the divisional health directorate.

He said yesterday, 858 people tested Covid positive out of 2,363 tests, taking the infection rate up to 36.31.

The total number of infected people in the division stands at 36,998 since the start of the pandemic, he confirmed.

The situation at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) reflects the state of the division. In the 24 hours till yesterday morning, 17 people, who had Covid-19 or showed symptoms, died at the hospital's isolation ward.

Dr Moniruzzaman Shahin, assistant director of SBMCH, said a total of 1,165 people died of Covid symptoms while 334 people died after testing positive at the hospital.

According to the hospital director's office, 343 people are being treated in the hospital's Covid unit at the moment.

It was also found that the hospital's RT PCR lab tested a total of 189 samples during the period, of whom 93 tested positive at an infection rate of 48.14 percent.

District Civil Surgeon Dr Monwar Hossain said considering the situation, Barishal Mother and Child Welfare Center has been turned into a 20-bed Covid unit. In addition, Barishal General Hospital has been turned into a 100-bed Covid dedicated hospital. It has also been decided to turn the upazila health complex into a 20-bed hospital.

Barishal division has become the new hotspot, said Divisional Health Director Dr  Basudeb Kumar Das. "Infections are really high (almost 40 percent). There is no way to resolve the situation without making everyone aware and vaccinating more people."

Barishal Deputy Commissioner Jasimuddin Haider said, "At the moment, we are trying to follow the Chapainawabganj model by forming a union and upazila committee to raise awareness. The initiative has been taken with grassroots representatives, imams and other influential people."