Covid-19 Cases Remain Elevated in Greece on Friday

Greece’s daily cases of Covid-19 remained elevated on Friday, as 1,997 total cases were recorded across the country.

The current figure marks 110 fewer instances of the virus than the 2,107 cases that had been recorded on Thursday.

Just five of Friday’s total cases was identified during routine Covid-19 testing of tourists at the country’s borders.

Currently, there are 141 patients with the coronavirus on ventilators in Greece, which is 12 fewer than the number of patients undergoing the invasive treatment in the country yesterday, Thursday.

Tragically, 12 people suffering from the coronavirus passed away in the country over the past 24-hour period, which is two more than those who died with the virus on Thursday.

Greece opens sports stadiums to vaccinated spectators

Greece is opening sports arenas for vaccinated spectators, according to a Sports Ministry announcement Thursday.

The fine print of the new rules stipulates that games can be enjoyed from up close so long as everyone in the audience wears a mask and unvaccinated youth do not make up more than five percent of the total group.

The Health Ministry’s national health committee, which has been advising on all government moves since the beginning of the pandemic, showed their support for the reopening of sports arenas.

In addition, the committee strongly recommended that sports organizations and mass media use vaccinated professionals on site, with the rest providing proof of a negative PCR or rapid test before the start of a game.

Adults booking tickets for games online have to show evidence of vaccination, and younger people who have not yet had the opportunity to get vaccinated will need to show a negative coronavirus test result, with both PCR and rapid antigen tests being accepted.

At those stadiums which do not have online platforms, this evidence will need to be presented at the door.

1,022 cases of coronavirus diagnosed in Attica alone; 106 in Heraklion

Of the 1,997 new coronavirus cases recorded in Greece in the past 24 hours, 1,022 were located in Attica, home to the Greek capital city of Athens.

In the city of Athens, a total of 289 cases of Covid-19 were identified Friday.

A total of 106 cases of the coronavirus have been diagnosed in Heraklion, and 73 in Rethymno, both located in Crete, where the Delta variant has begun to spread.

Over 400,000 total cases of Covid-19 diagnosed in Greece

Since the beginning of the pandemic, a total of 435,018 cases of Covid-19 have been recorded in the country, including all those who have recovered from the virus.

Of the cases diagnosed in Greece in the past seven days, just 148 are associated with foreign travel and 1,889 have been linked to contact with a known case.

Of the 141 patients intubated currently, 88.7% are over the age of 70 or suffer from preexisting conditions. Their average age is 70.

Additionally, a total of 2,728 patients have been discharged from ICUs around the country since the beginning of the pandemic.

The 12 new deaths recorded on Friday bring the total number of fatalities in the country to 12,785; 95.2% of those who have passed away with the virus were over the age of 70 or suffered from underlying health issues.