Madrid, Mar 26 (UNI) In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Spanish parliament on Thursday gave its approval to the government's proposal to extend the high alert till April 11.
Spain is the country which has recorded the highest death toll after Italy as its death toll reached 3,434 on Wednesday.
Spain has become the world's fourth-largest COVID-19 hotspot, as the southeastern European country continues to struggle to summon the resources needed to treat the infected people, in a market, that has failed to supply everyone affected by the ongoing pandemic.
Neighbouring Italy is currently the epicentre of the outbreak in Europe, with more than 5,400 deaths and over 60,000 confirmed cases of the disease.
Worldwide coronavirus or COVID-19, which originated from China's Wuhan, has infected almost 3,50,000 people in around 50 countries with more than 15,000 deaths.
According to a CNN report, an ice rink, here, has been turned into a temporary morgue to keep the dead bodies of coronavirus victims.
Madrid is one of the epicenters of the epidemics in Spain. The president of the Madrid region, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, said last week that the city expects 80 per cent of its population to get COVID-19. "They will have mild symptoms," she told a local radio, but added that the illness will be a problem for the city's vulnerable population, which is around 15 per cent of people.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described social isolation as a tough decision for the government to take and the people to abide by but labeled it a sacrifice which is necessary.
The opposition parties criticized the government for alleged delay in introducing quarantine measures.
As of now, the death toll has reached 3,434 while more than 48,000 positive cases in Spain.
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