|
ROME, July 5-- Worries of a potential new but limited wave of coronavirus infections are on the rise in Italy, even as official data showed that on a national level the infection rate has slowed to a trickle. According to data from the Italian Ministry of Health, the country on Sunday reported 192 new cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. The figure, down from 235 a day earlier, marks the 17th consecutive day with fewer than 300 new cases. New cases in Italy peaked at more than 6,000 a day in late March. The ministry also reported just 7 COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, the third time in ten days the national death toll is in single digits, and the 36th consecutive day the number remains under 100. Total coronavirus hospitalizations (945, up from 940) and the number of patients in intensive-care units (74, up from 71) rose slightly over the past day. But those figures were still broadly trending downward in recent weeks. There were 14,642 active cases in the country as of Sunday, 21 more than on Saturday, while 164 people were newly declared recovered from the virus, bringing that total to 192,108. NEW HOTSPOTS A recent cluster of new cases in Veneto has raised eyebrows. The region, which includes the canal city of Venice, was one of Italy's earliest coronavirus hotspots, but in recent months it was hailed as a success story for limiting the spread of the virus more than other parts of the country. | 
