Meanwhile, the number of patients treated at hospitals climbed to 486 on Thursday compared to 437 the day before, acting day-to-day chief of the Kudus District Health Office, Masut, said on Thursday.
With another 231 patients recovering from the infection, the total number of recoveries reached 7,085, he added.
With 24 patients dying of COVID-19 on Thursday, the death toll reached 808.
To thwart the spread of COVID-19, the local government has shut down all tourist sites, including roadside markets. It has also urged food stalls to only serve take-away meals.
Earlier, Vice Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono had said the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Kudus and East Java’s Bangkalan district is the result of public negligence in observing the health protocols,
"The various incidents in Kudus and Bangkalan that we do not want together are one of the examples of how (the local people) ignored the right health protocols," he said during an online dialog originating from the KPOPEN Media Center in Jakarta.
The COVID-19 infection rate in regions depends on the level of public mobility, and this has particularly been the case after the Eid al-Fitr holidays, he noted.
It is possible similar surges could be seen in other regions in the country, he said.
According to Kudus district head M Hartopo, coronavirus infections in the district have surged to nearly two thousand, well above the previous forecast of 200.
Ninety-six medical workers have been sent to Kudus district from other parts of Central Java province to help handle the major increase in COVID-19 cases.
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Translator: Akhmad Nazaruddin/Suharto
Editor: Gusti Nur Cahya Aryani
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