In the past 24 hours roughly 738 people have died in Spain as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. This officially pushes the country into second place behind Italy for death toll, overtaking China, where the virus was first detected.
The European country has now become an epicentre for pandemic that is sweeping across the globe. The flare of cases in Spain has many asking what they did wrong, as other countries in close proximity are fairing far better amid the global crisis.
Some are blaming the spread on the county’s delayed response, with many medical professionals initially expecting a far lower rate of daily cases. According to The Guardian, the dead per capita in Spain is now 40 times that of China.
A soccer match on February 19 in Bergamo has been flagged as one of the turning points for the nation. Roughly 2 500 Valencia fans attended the event alongside 40 000 Atalanta supporters. Among the first to fall sick in the country were soccer fans, sports journalists and players.
Other factors that contributed towards the spread include a warmer spring that encouraged locals to leave their homes and socialise as well as a late lockdown in the country which only took place on March 14 despite cases being confirmed earlier in the month.
The Spanish health care system and elderly care system is being overwhelmed by the virus. Once emergency powers were invoked in the country, a 24 hour delay period led to a dispersing of residents across the country, extending the virus’ reach.
The death toll currently stands at 3 647 with 49 515 confirmed cases and 5 367 recovered patients.
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