Czech Republic coronavirus updates, July 30: 278 new cases, Prague Castle Guard soldier infected

The Czech Republic reported 278 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, according to the latest figures reported by the Czech Health Ministry this morning. It’s the second-highest daily increase over the past month.

The number of COVID-19 tests conducted throughout the Czech Republic has been rising in recent days, however. A total of 7,413 tests were performed on Tuesday, the most since late May. The number of tests performed on Wednesday will be posted later today.

On Tuesday, officials stated that the country’s major hospitals would increase their capacity for performing COVID-19 tests fourfold, and expect to reach a potential number of 30,000 tests every day by September.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the Czech Republic since March has crossed 16,000, and now stands at 16,093. The Czech Republic has reported a total of 11,429 recoveries and 375 COVID-19-related deaths over that span.

There are currently 4,289 known active COVID-19 cases in the Czech Republic, the highest number since mid-April.

There are currently 120 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the Czech Republic, with 21 in serious condition.

Over the past seven days, the Prachtice district in South Bohemia has seen the highest percentage of new cases, at about 57 cases per 100,000 residents. Jihlava has reported 45 new cases per 100,000 residents.

Yesterday, mass testing began at the Intica Systems company in Prachtice, where 33 new COVID-19 cases have been registered after about 300 tests.

In Jihlava, the Czech Army has been deployed soldiers to assist at the city’s Alzheimer’s Center, where 57 employees and patients have been diagnosed with COVID-19 last week. Three of those patients have since died.

Czech Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček announced yesterday that Tunisia, a popular vacation destination in North Africa, has lifted restrictions on travelers from the Czech Republic, enabling travel without the need for a negative COVID-19 test.

Korean Air has announced they will be resuming flights between Prague and Seoul from August 21; the airline currently operates flights between Prague and Doha and Dubai.