Bangladesh confirms first death from new coronavirus

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) - Bangladesh on Wednesday confirmed its first death due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Meerjady Sabrina Flora, head of Bangladesh's Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, announced during a news conference that the patient was a 70-year-old woman who was suffering from cardiac problems, high-blood pressure, kidney diseases and diabetes.

She got infected after getting in contact with a person who had just returned from abroad, said the official.

Another 14 people have been infected with the virus which causes the disease known as COVID-19, she added.

Flora said that the infection spread in the country due to family contacts.

Worldwide, out of over 200,000 confirmed cases, the death toll now exceeds 8,000, while nearly 83,000 patients have recovered, according to Worldometer, a website that compiles new case numbers.

The number of active cases is more than 107,000 -- 93% mild and 7% in critical condition, according to the website.

Last week, the World Health Organization declared Europe the new epicenter of the virus, which first emerged in Wuhan, China last December.