site.btaCOVID-19 Cases in Bulgaria Reach 457, Death Toll Rises to 10

April 2 (BTA) - The confirmed cases of COVID-19 in
Bulgaria have reached 457 and the number of fatalities has
increased to ten. The head of the national coronavirus task
force, Gen. Ventsislav Moutafchiiski, told a regular news
briefing on Thursday morning that 37 new cases were diagnosed in
 the past 24 hours and four more cases were reported by the
Health Ministry later in the day, all of them in Sofia.

Two people have died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours.

A total of 27 patients have been discharged from hospital, the
youngest of whom 27, and the oldest 80.

A total of 179 COVID-19 patients are hospitalized.

Moutafchiiski said that there has been "a heavy tendency for
infection of doctors". He also said that in all likelihood, only
 two out of every eleven infected people are detected.

Mouafchiiski once again stressed the need for "fanatical
compliance" with physical distancing requirements.

He said that the measures put in place during the national
emergency declared on March 13 will be eased when infections go
down.

The Director of the National Centre of Infectious and Parasitic
Diseases, Prof. Todor Kantardjiev, stressed the need to wear
masks and glasses as prevention against getting infected.

Three more coronavirus testing laboratories are to be opened in
Sofia and one in Pleven.

Pets cannot infect people, Kantardjiev said, reacting to alerts
about abandoned dogs and cats. "Each epidemic is a test for the
public morality," he said. RI/ZH,MY