Coronavirus: UAE reports 3,498 new cases and 16 deaths

Another 2,478 patients beat the virus in the past 24 hours

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  A man wears a face mask in Al Jadaf area in Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

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  A shopkeeper lights coal to burn incense to attract customers to his shop in Dubai's Spice Souq. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  A shopkeeper in Deira Souq. He fills a bag with tea leaves that he hopes to sell to tourists. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  Men talk at the Abra station near the Spice Souq. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  An almost empty street in Deira Souq. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  Pedestrians wait to cross Baniyas Street in Deira. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  A sign at the Old Souq Abra Station in Deira reminds people to wear a mask. Antonie Robertson / The National

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  People step off an abra in Dubai. Antonie Robertson / The National

The UAE reported 3,498 cases of Covid-19 on Friday, increasing the overall number of infections to 385,160.

Officials said 2,478 patients beat the virus in the past 24 hours. The recovery tally now stands at 377,537.

Sixteen patients died owing to health complications, taking the death toll to 1,198.

Another 187,176 tests were carried out. More than 30.2 million tests have been conducted since the beginning of the outbreak.

There are 6,425 active cases in the country.

Health authorities said 87,263 vaccines were distributed in the past 24 hours.

As of Friday, 5,933,299 doses of vaccine had been administered to the public, representing 59.99 doses per 100 people.

Currently, a team of experts from Khalifa University, UAE University, Abu Dhabi Health Services Company, Dubai Health Authority and the University of Sharjah are studying why the effects of Covid-19 are severe in some people.

They are investigating whether a person's genes and proteins make them more susceptible to developing serious complications.

In other developments, all schools and nurseries in Sharjah will continue distance learning for the rest of the spring term.

The decision to extend remote learning until March 25 was made to keep pupils safe, authorities said.

Classroom lessons were originally suspended for at least two weeks in mid-February to curb the spread of Covid-19.

But Sharjah’s emergency, crisis and disaster management team and education authorities decided that it was not yet safe to resume in-person learning.