COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium

COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium
DiseaseCOVID-19
Virus strainSARS-CoV-2
LocationBelgium
First outbreakWuhan, Hubei, China[1]
Index caseBrussels
Arrival date3 February 2020
(4 years, 9 months and 2 weeks ago)
Confirmed cases4,889,888[2][nb 1][3]
Recovered4,736,144[4]
Deaths
34,339[2][3][nb 2]
Fatality rate0.7%
Vaccinations8,697,961[3]
Government website
www.info-coronavirus.be

The COVID-19 pandemic in Belgium has resulted in 4,889,888[2] confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 34,339[2] deaths.

The virus was confirmed to have spread to Belgium on 4 February 2020, when one of a group of nine Belgians repatriated from Wuhan to Brussels was reported to have tested positive for the coronavirus.[5][6] Transmission within Belgium was confirmed in early March; authorities linked this to holidaymakers returning from Northern Italy at the end of the half-term holidays.[7][8] The epidemic increased rapidly in March–April 2020. By the end of March all 10 provinces of the country had registered cases.[citation needed]

By March 2021, Belgium had the third highest number of COVID-19 deaths per head of population in the world, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. However, Belgium may have been over-reporting the number of cases, with health officials reporting that suspected cases were being reported along with confirmed cases.[9] Unlike some countries that publish figures based primarily on confirmed hospital deaths, the death figures reported by the Belgian authorities included deaths in the community, such as in care homes, confirmed to have been caused by the virus, as well as a much larger number of such deaths suspected to have been caused by the virus, even if the person was not tested.[10]

  1. ^ Cyranoski, David (26 February 2020). "Mystery deepens over animal source of coronavirus". Nature. 579 (7797): 18–19. Bibcode:2020Natur.579...18C. doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00548-w. PMID 32127703.
  2. ^ a b c d Mathieu, Edouard; Ritchie, Hannah; Rodés-Guirao, Lucas; Appel, Cameron; Giattino, Charlie; Hasell, Joe; Macdonald, Bobbie; Dattani, Saloni; Beltekian, Diana; Ortiz-Ospina, Esteban; Roser, Max (2020–2024). "Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19)". Our World in Data. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Coronavirus COVID-19". info-coronavirus.be (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  4. ^ "COVID - Coronavirus Statistics - Worldometer". Archived from the original on 3 February 2020. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  5. ^ "One repatriated Belgian has tested positive for the novel coronavirus". Federal Public Service Health. 4 February 2020. Archived from the original on 6 April 2020.
  6. ^ "COVID-19 Belgian leaves hospital". VRT. 16 February 2020. Archived from the original on 12 May 2020.
  7. ^ "6 new cases of Covid-19 by the end of the spring holidays". info-coronavirus.be. Federal Public Service Health. 2 March 2020. Archived from the original on 16 May 2020.
  8. ^ Bradshaw, Lisa (2 March 2020). "Seven confirmed coronavirus cases in Belgium following holiday week". Flanders Today. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  9. ^ "Coronavirus: Why so many people are dying in Belgium". BBC. 2 May 2020. Archived from the original on 9 May 2020. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  10. ^ McCaffrey, Darren (22 April 2020). "Analysis: Can we trust Belgium's COVID-19 death statistics?". Euronews. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020. Retrieved 24 April 2020.


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