Spain struggles to contain COVID-19 as contagion rate rises
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People wait after receiving their vaccine against Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during a homeless vaccination deployment at a vaccination center in Valencia, Spain on July 15, 2021. REUTERS / Eva Manez
MADRID, July 16 (Reuters) – The two-week coronavirus contagion rate in Spain rose to 537 cases per 100,000 population on Friday, according to data from the Ministry of Health, as the country struggled to cope with an increase cases of COVID-19.
A tourist magnet, Catalonia has been the hardest hit, with a 14-day contagion rate reaching 1,160 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to data from the Ministry of Health.
In early June, Spanish authorities breathed a sigh of relief after reducing COVID-19 cases to a trickle.
However, in mid-July, regions like Catalonia imposed curfews and other restrictions as the nation scrambled to control the outbreak.
Epidemiologists blame a rush to resume international tourism and increased socialization among unvaccinated youth, with the end of the school year coinciding with the appearance of the now-dominant Delta variant and the reopening of nightlife. Read more
In Spain, 4,100,222 people have tested positive for the coronavirus while 81,096 have died since the start of the pandemic, according to data from the Ministry of Health on Friday.
Reporting by Graham Keeley; Editing by Toby Chopra
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