Alyssa McMurtry
06 January 2021•Update: 06 January 2021
OVIEDO, Spain
New coronavirus infections skyrocketed Wednesday in Portugal with the Health Ministry reporting 10,027 new cases -- the nation’s highest daily surge since the pandemic began.
The figure shatters the previous record by nearly 2,500, which was set New Year’s Eve. It more than doubles the number of infections reported Tuesday.
Portugal’s population is just above 10 million, so the daily surge is even higher on a per capita basis than the historic daily surges in the UK, which has a population of nearly 67 million.
Authorities confirmed Sunday 16 cases of the British strain of the virus.
As a response to surging cases, the Portuguese government decided Wednesday to extend a state of emergency for another week until Jan. 15.
Portugal relaxed restrictions around the Christmas holidays to allow family gatherings, but an early curfew was enforced during New Year celebrations.
Health Minister Marta Temido told reporters that “the days to come are going to be very tough” and noted an “intense pressure” on the nation’s health care system.
She also asked hospitals in the Lisbon area to suspend non-urgent medical services to adapt to the growing pandemic.
More than 500 COVID-19 patients are currently being treated in intensive care units.
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa also announced Wednesday he was going into quarantine after being in recent contact with someone who tested positive for the virus.
Hours later, his office announced he would resume normal activity after testing negative and because his contact was considered “low risk.”
Another 91 people died from COVID-19 in Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 7,377.
