BOGOTA, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- The Colombian Ministry of Health and Social Protection reported on Friday that the total number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country rose to 445,111, with 14,492 deaths.
The ministry reported that 11,306 new cases and 347 more deaths were reported, and that 41,434 tests for the disease were carried out in the last 24 hours.
Claudia Lopez, mayor of Colombian capital Bogota, announced that, starting on Sunday, seven areas in the city will be placed under extreme quarantine until Aug. 30 due to the high number of infections, affecting about 1.2 million people.
"Bogota today for the first time has many more recovered than the infected, because we are already on the plateau of that first peak of the pandemic, but we still have 86 percent occupancy of ICUs (intensive care units). We have some wiggle room, yes, but we are still going through the peak," she said.
"This phase will be the final quarantines. In September, there will be a new normal that will allow people to go out in shifts, so that there are not too many people on the street," she added.
According to the health ministry, 261,296 people have recovered from the disease so far. Enditem
