UAE reports highest number of new COVID-19 deaths, total death toll passes 1,000

UAE reports highest number of new COVID-19 deaths, total death toll passes 1,000
February 13, 2021, 10:53 am

A first responder arrives to take a patient in Dubai. (File photo: Reuters)

The United Arab Emirates reported fifteen COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, its highest number of new coronavirus deaths since the outbreak began, the Ministry of Health and Prevention announced.

The virus-related death toll in the country is now 1,001, according to officials.

Meanwhile, 3589 people recovered from the virus, which raises the total number of recoveries in the country to 326,780.

Authorities recorded 2,631 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the UAE to 345,605.

The UAE has been reporting a spike in the number of new infections everyday since the beginning of 2021, largely resulting from the large influx of tourists who traveled to the emirate of Dubai for the holidays.

Dubai has had to increase its healthcare capacity, recruiting workers from abroad and increasing beds for coronavirus patients to deal with the rising number of cases, according to a top health official.

“Recently when the numbers started to rise again... the health system has managed to surge its capacity to stay ahead of the curve and make sure that every patient today in Dubai... who needs care, gets it without any interruption,” the Dubai Health Authority’s deputy director general Alawi Alsheikh-Ali told AFP.

The UAE has been pushing its citizens and residents to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, and is offering the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, the Pfizer dose, and the AstraZeneca vaccine for free.