Turkey opens another emergency hospital in Istanbul

By Burak Bir

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey on Sunday opened an emergency hospital in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul as part of the country's continued fight against the pandemic.

The new Yesilkoy Prof. Dr. Murat Dilmener Emergency Hospital in Istanbul is named after a Turkish doctor and academic who was claimed by the virus on May 3.

Attending the opening ceremony were Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Vice President Fuat Oktay, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca, and other top officials.

Speaking at the opening, Erdogan stressed the importance of emergency hospitals.

"Thank Allah, we have prevented the spread of the pandemic even without a need for additional capacity we created here [in the new hospital]," he said.

The emergency hospitals put into service in the country in only two months during the COVID-19 constitute "an exemplary model", he stressed.

The country is making "very serious" progress in the health tourism, Erdogan added.

Turkey on Friday opened an emergency hospital in Istanbul, Dr. Feriha Oz Emergency Hospital -- named after a world-renowned Turkish pathologist who was claimed by the virus this April.

COVID-19 recoveries have steadily rose in Turkey over the past weeks, reaching almost 127,000 on Saturday.

The country’s overall case count stands at 163,103, including 4,515 fatalities.

The pandemic has claimed nearly 370,000 lives in 188 countries and regions, with more than 6 million cases reported worldwide, including over 2.58 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.