Turkey records highest single-day coronavirus toll: 141 deaths

Turkey recorded its highest single-day COVID-19 death toll on Nov. 20, with 141 fatalities reported, according to data from the Health Ministry. The data showed 5,103 new COVID-19 patients were recorded in the country, the second highest new daily figure since the beginning of the pandemic.

Friday November 20 2020 07:48 pm

FILE PHOTO: People wearing protective masks walk over the Galata Bridge in Istanbul on Nov 7. (Reuters)

Duvar English

Turkey's daily death toll from the coronavirus hit a record high of 141 on Nov. 20, according to data from the Health Ministry, as the country braced for nationwide measures amid a surge in cases in recent weeks.

The data showed 5,103 new COVID-19 patients were recorded in the country, the second highest new daily figure since the beginning of the pandemic. The overall death toll rose to 12,084. Since July, Ankara has only reported symptomatic COVID-19 patients, a move critics say hides the true scale of the outbreak.

"We have today new 5,013 diagnosed patients. The number of severely ill patients approached 4,000. We were obliged to reimplement restrictions in the fight against the pandemic. If we comply with the measures together, put our own restrictions on ourselves, the struggle will be easier. Support us," Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted.

Bugün tespit edilen 5.103 yeni hastamız var. Ağır hasta sayımız 4.000’e yaklaştı. Salgınla mücadelede yeniden kısıtlamalar uygulamak zorunda kaldık. Birlikte tedbirlere uyarsak kendi kısıtlamalarımızı kendimiz koyarsak mücadele daha kolay olacak. Güç verin https://t.co/RVlhe7786O
— Dr. Fahrettin Koca (@drfahrettinkoca) November 20, 2020

Earlier this week, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced the tighter restrictions, including the introduction of weekend partial curfews and limitations on the opening hours of restaurants, cafes and shopping malls.

The Turkish Medical Association (TTB) said on Nov. 20 that its own calculations based on data from 1,270 medics in 76 different provinces showed daily COVID-19 cases had surged to more than 47,500. It reported a 300 percent increase in coronavirus cases in November.