Coronavirus: UAE records highest daily Covid-19 cases to date

Active cases rise for a second consecutive day after a week of recoveries outstripping new infections

A sign at a public beach in Dubai urging people to follow Covid-19 distancing rules. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Participants seated adhering to social-distancing rules during an event at Dubai Knowledge Park, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

An employee brings drinks to customers at Cafe Society in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

An employee disinfects a table before welcoming customers in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

An employee checks a customer's temperature at Cafe Society in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Visitors to Reform Athletica yoga studio in Dubai perform their exercises with their masks on. Chris Whiteoak / The National

An employee waits to measure customers' temperatures at Cafe Society in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

A cordoned off swing along the Abu Dhabi corniche amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Victor Besa / The National

A signboard on Covid-19 precautionary measures at Umm Al Emarat Park, Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

The UAE recorded 1,723 cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday, the highest number of daily infections to date.

Its highest previous daily figure was 1,578 on October 22. At least 206,092 cases of coronavirus have been detected in the Emirates since the outbreak.

Another 1,607 patients were cleared of the virus, raising the recovery total to 183,007.

Three patients died, taking the death toll to 665.

Almost 89 per cent of the country’s total infections ended in recovery but about 0.3 per cent of patients died.

Wednesday's cases were detected after an additional 150,244 PCR and DPI tests were conducted across the country, of which 1.1 per cent were positive.

The Emirates has one of the highest rates of screening per capita worldwide, with more than 20.7 million tests carried out since January.

Active cases increased, for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, to 22,420, after a week of recoveries outstripping new infections.

On Tuesday, officials said they had detected a “limited number” of cases of a more infectious Covid-19 variant that was first reported in the UK.

The mutant strain has since spread to countries including the US, Spain, South Korea, Sweden and Japan.

Dr Omar Al Hammadi, the spokesman for the UAE government, said the variant was found in people who had travelled into the Emirates but stressed that it was being “managed and contained” by health authorities.

Despite the increase in active cases, Dr Al Hammadi said, the UAE outperformed most countries when it came to recoveries that there were fewer deaths per capita than in many other nations.

Between December 23 and 29, the Emirates reported 8,491 new cases of Covid-19 after conducting 992,048 tests, indicating that fewer than 1 per cent of people tested had the virus.

Dr Al Hammadi compared that with the 12.8 per cent new case rate in Europe and 8.5 per cent case rate elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa.

The UAE’s death rate for the past week was 0.3 per cent, which Dr Al Hammadi said was among the lowest in the world.

Death rates across Europe during the same period were 2.4 per cent while the Middle East and North Africa as a whole had a fatality rate of 1.9 per cent, he said.