The death toll from COVID-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, in Turkey has reached 44, while the number of confirmed cases have increased to 1,872, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Tuesday evening.
“In the last 24 hours, a total of 3,952 tests were conducted and 343 new diagnoses were made. We lost 7 more patients,” Koca tweeted.
One of the deceased was already ill due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, while the other six were elderly, he added.
The first case of coronavirus in Turkey was confirmed by the minister on March 11.
Experts say the exponential increase in the number of cases poses a great danger to the Turkish public.
First seen in the Chinese city of Wuhan, COVID-19 has spread rapidly around the world, infecting nearly 417,000 people worldwide and killing more than 18,600.