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Coronavirus pandemic

Switzerland’s coronavirus cases increase by 900 in one day

So far, the county has reported 16,176 cases of coronavirus and 373 fatalities

GENEVA, April 1. /TASS/. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Switzerland has increased by 963 in the past 34 hours to reach 17,139, the Swiss health agency said Wednesday.

"Currently, 17,139 people tested positive [for coronavirus] and 378 people died," the agency stressed. Therefore, the number of cases increased by 963, while five more people passed away.

As of March 30, the county reported 16,176 cases of coronavirus and 373 fatalities. Switzerland reported its first coronavirus case on February 25.

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More than 173,000 Swiss had their coronavirus tests taken, the infection was found in 15% of the tests. According to the authorities, the average age of patients is 53. The infection map published on Wednesday shows that the canton of Ticino on the Italian border is the most affected (on average, 617 cases per 100,000 inhabitants). The canton of Vaud comes second (457.4). They are followed by Geneva (443.1) and Basel-Stadt (394.8). High levels of infection are reported from Liechtenstein (148.5), daily included in the Swiss statistics. Tribune de Geneve daily is monitoring the death toll and cases in the country, saying that 120 people died in Ticino, 77 - in Vaud, while Geneva has 49 deaths and Basel-Stadt reported 16 deaths. RTS TV, meanwhile, analyzed the situation in the country in the past few weeks, saying that new infection and death rates have slowed down lately.

The Swiss government on March 20 tightened rules to combat coronavirus spread, however, stopped short of imposing a total lockdown. Public gatherings of more than five people outside of homes are banned, while people should observe social distancing of two meters. Perpetrators are fined by the police. The emergency is declared until April 19, while restaurants, bars, museums and cinemas are shut down. Educational facilities are closed until April 4.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus - named COVID-19 by the WHO - have been reported in more than 160 countries, including Russia

On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. To date, more than 850,000 people have been infected worldwide and over 42,000 deaths have been reported.

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