The number of people infected with the coronavirus in Croatia has increased by 15 in the last 24 hours, totaling 128 on Friday afternoon, while Serbia confirmed the first death, of a 59-year-old man from the northern province of Vojvodina.

The man had underlying health conditions, Serbian Prime Minister, Ana Brnabic, said, adding that eight more people in the country were in critical condition.

Serbia recorded 17 new cases of the coronavirus on Friday, bringing the total to 135.

New cases in Croatia, officials warn of violations of self-isolation orders

“Fifteen more people have tested positive since 7am, so now there are 128 infected people in total. Five have recovered, and we have tested a total of 1,779 samples,” civil protection official Maja Grba-Bujevic said at a press conference on Friday.

Three patients are in more serious condition and are on respirators, said the head of the Zagreb Fran Mihaljevic hospital, Alemka Markotic.

“We are not satisfied with the observance of self-isolation measures. This morning alone, 18 people violated self-isolation measures by entering pharmacies in Zagreb,” Grba-Bujevic said.

Earlier this week, the government introduced harsh fines for people who are violating self-isolation rules, which start at 8,000 kuna (€1,060).

Also, sweeping measures were rolled out across the country on Thursday, aiming to enforce social distancing in an effort to combat the spread of the virus. All non-essential stores were closed down, including restaurants, bars, cinemas, libraries, and museums.

Only grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, bakeries, and kiosks were allowed to stay open, with strict rules imposed on people to keep a safe distance from each other at all times. Gatherings of more than five people at a time have been banned. 

Croatia also confirmed its first death on Thursday morning, according to figures collected by the Johns Hopkins University.

Health Minister Vili Beros announced on Friday that additional protective masks would be procured, adding that Croatia has enough coronavirus testing kits and about 800 ventilators, “which is far more than the number of people we predict will need them, looking at percentages coming in from Italy and China.”

He once again appealed to people to be responsible and avoid physical contact.

He confirmed that preparations are currently underway to transform the Arena sports hall in Zagreb into a centre which will accommodate patients with mild symptoms of the disease. On Thursday, the military also began putting up tents for a medical camp outside Zagreb Dubrava hospital centre. The camp will have the capacity to accommodate some 270 patients.

Case count rises across the region

Bosnia and Herzegovina reported 84 cases total on Friday, up from 63 on Thursday.

In Slovenia, the caseload rose by 22 in the last 24 hours, to 341, the national public health institute reported on Friday afternoon. Out of the 341 diagnosed cases, 21 are children.

Italy, which remains the deadliest centre of the coronavirus outbreak in the world, confirmed on Friday that 627 people died in the country in the last 24 hours alone, the largest single-day toll anywhere in the world since the coronavirus outbreak began. So far, more than 4,000 people died in Italy since the outbreak began in February, and almost 6,000 new cases were found since Thursday, bringing the total to more than 47,000.