Germany: 6-fold increase in severe COVID-19 patients

BERLIN (AA) - The number of coronavirus patients in Germany’s intensive care units increased nearly six times in a month, hitting a new daily high of 3,005 on Monday.

Nearly 1,300 hospitals across the country have reported a sharp increase in the number of severely ill COVID-19 patients in recent weeks, according to the DIVI association for emergency medicine.

As of Monday, 3,005 coronavirus patients were receiving treatment in intensive care units (ICUs), up from 510 patients on Oct. 9., according to the figures.

Patients who are on mechanical ventilators also rose to 1,688, up from 252 nearly a month ago.

German health authorities have repeatedly warned that while the country has plenty of ICU beds, hospitals might soon be short-staffed due to the sharp increase in new infections.

The country’s disease control agency, the Robert Koch Institute, reported on Monday 13,363 new infections and 63 more deaths, taking the country’s caseload to 671,868 and official death toll to 11,352.

Germany has the fifth-highest tally of coronavirus infections in Europe, behind France, Spain, the UK, and Italy.