BARCELONA, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Barcelona's Fira exhibition center is preparing a total of 24,000 meals destined for health centers fighting coronavirus across Spain, the Fira announced Tuesday in a press release.
The meals, prepared by Gastrofira, the in-house department for catering services at Fira, will be distributed among hospitals and nursing homes in Barcelona and other Spanish towns by the health centers' catering services, Fira communications officer Folc Lecha told Xinhua.
The initial forecast is to prepare 1,000 meals and 1,000 dinners for the next few days, which will only have to be heated and served. The goal is to reach 24,000 rations in total, the Fira said.
The Fira said it had substantially increased its safety and hygiene measures and had designed specific protocols for the reception, production, packaging and dispatch processes. In addition to the use of masks, protective suits and gloves, contact between workers -- both in the work area and in the common areas, such as changing rooms, dining rooms and rest areas -- is prohibited and avoided.
Initiated by Fira Barcelona, the project also includes the building of a temporary hospital named "Fira Salut" in collaboration with the Catalan Ministry of Health and the Catalan government.
One pavilion on the Fira Barcelona premises has been turned into a shelter for the homeless with up to 225 beds and a kitchen to serve around 300 meals per day.
On Tuesday, Spain registered a record 849 coronavirus fatalities, bringing the overall death toll to 8,189. The total number of confirmed cases rose to 94,417, according to the Health Ministry.
