Five new Covid-19 deaths were reported today. This includes a woman from Kumanovo who was just 40 years old and was diagnosed post-mortem. A 45 year old man from Gostivar also died after battling the virus for less than a week.

The Kumanovo general hospital reported the death of a male patient aged 51, who was also hospitalized a week ago. A 77 year old woman from Skopje died in the “8th of September” hospital, where the most difficult cases are treated. And the Struga general hospital had an 80 year old man die after a brief period of treatment. This brings the death toll of the epidemic to 238.

The Healthcare Ministry reported 101 newly diagnosed patients, out of 776 tests that were conducted in the past day. The capital Skopje remains the most exposed part of the country with 57 newly diagnosed patients, followed by Tetovo with 19 and Kumanovo with 13. Disregard for the social distancing rules during the month of Ramadan is blamed for the spike in the epidemic in all these cities, as the highest rates are detected in the majority Muslim areas. Stip, where the epidemic was driven by poor workplace conditions in the numerous textile mills, had just three new cases reported today.

The number of active coronavirus cases is approaching 3.000, and 1.699 of them are reported in Skopje, with Tetovo (325) and Kumanovo (239) far behind. The two main clinics in Skopje that treat Covid-19 cases admitted 14 new patients, and currently have a total of 228. Of them, seven are on mechanical ventilation. During the presumed peak of the epidemic in mid April there were at most 90 patients treated at any given time. The Kozle children’s hospital is about to be added to the list of principal treatment centers for Covid-19, as the two existing clinics (the “8th of September” and the Infectious Diseases Clinic) are approaching full capacity. There are 35 patients treated in the general hospital in Bitola and 18 in Stip, and dozens of patients in the hospitals in Tetovo, Ohrid, Veles, Kumanovo and Prilep.