Kyiv Mayor’s Coronavirus Update – March 26, 2021
26.03.2021
The mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko held a briefing providing an update on the coronavirus situation in Ukraine’s capital and the measures the city is taking to respond.
Klitschko: The coronavirus situation is not improving in Kyiv. The number of confirmed cases has risen to 157,767, with new 1,164 cases overnight. The number of deaths increased by 37, bringing the death toll to 3,235. 431 people recovered, taking total recoveries to 104,153.
Newly infected with COVID-19 are 650 women (18-96 age range), 461 men (19-92 years old) and 53 children. 24 patients have been hospitalised. 15 new cases are healthcare workers.
787 persons were admitted to hospitals – either with positive or suspected COVID-19 or pneumonia.
The highest overnight number of new cases, 250 has been reported in the Darnytsky district.
Unfortunately, the hospitalisation rate for COVID-19 is steadily high. Kyiv has now recorded the highest number of hospital admissions, 4,252, including 41 children.
Currently, there are 1,010 such in-patients, including 30 children. 2,700 people are very sick, 3,488 need supplemental oxygen. 60 people are put on a ventilator. The bed occupancy rate is almost 77 per cent.
There is a dramatic rise in deaths due to the complicated course of COVID-19. Kyiv had 220 new virus-related deaths reported the last week. The youngest patient who has died from the coronavirus infection was a 31-year-old man and the oldest were two women aged 95.
Also, let me remind you about the ongoing seasonal epidemic of flu. Last week saw a 22 per cent increase in flu cases which also may need hospitalisation.
We have put all effort to fight the pandemic. Speaking about the municipality’s response, the city continues to add beds and allocate more funds for purchasing medications, equipment and PPE. About 6,000 beds in the city COVID-19 hospitals have been deployed so far. Almost 4,000 of them have oxygen support. There are over 573 ventilators and 1,254 oxygen concentrators available in the municipal coronavirus facilities across Kyiv. Since hospital admissions are rising fast our hospitals are going to face a critical shortage of coronavirus beds. But despite all our pleas, 11,000 beds in the Kyiv-based national hospitals, attached to a specific ministry remain unavailable for infected Kyivans.
Now I want to urge Kyivans to avoid public transport as much as possible. Please, stay home unless you need to go to work or have a really good reason to travel. And please remember that the essential public services workers have a priority to use public transport. Every day altogether 1,131 buses, trolley-buses and trams run the streets. Metro also operates as normal.
You know, sometimes our health and even life depend on our compliance with the healthcare rules, so please do not ignore them.