56 new Covid-19 cases recorded as Roma settlement is placed on lockdown

Four more people died from coronavirus disease 2019 in the last 24 hours in Greece, with the total number of victims standing at 90, Health Ministry spokesman Sotiris Tsiodras said on Friday.

Health authorities confirmed an additional 56 new cases of Covid-19 which bring the total to 2,011, of which 57 percent are male.

There are currently 77 patients being treated in intensive care units who have an average age of 67, while 75percent of them have an underlying illness or are elderly over 70 years of age.

In the same press conference, Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias told journalists that a Roma settlement located near the city of Larissa in central Greece, has been placed on lockdown, after 20 people tested positive for Covid-19.

Hardalias and Tsiodras visited the settlement hours before the press conference to evaluate the situation and discuss with the residents what they need to do.

Hardalias said about 200 tests have been conducted on people living around the settlement.

“The situation is difficult, the example of Larissa shows how fragile the situation is,” he said adding that authorities have secured the supply of food and medicine for the residents of the settlement.