According to the Polish Ministry of Health, 5 additional patients passed away on Monday due to complications from COVID-19, bringing the country’s total to 31.

Like the majority of victims, the patients were all over the age of 60, with the youngest being a 60-year-old man in the southeastern town of Biłgoraj and the oldest an 87-year-old woman from Radom. Notably, a majority of the patients (3 of 5) were women, and all were reportedly suffering from underlying medical conditions.

Nationwide, the total number of infections as of 9:00 on Tuesday was 2,132, with the provinces of Mazowieckie and Śląskie having the highest rates of infection. Six new cases have also been reported in Pomerania since Sunday, bringing the total number to 51 confirmed infections in the region.

Although the disease has proved more fatal in the elderly, the Ministry of Health warned yesterday that 25% of diagnoses in Poland are people under the age of 30, and appealed to this group specifically to aggressively practice social distancing in order to avoid becoming carriers.

In response to the growing number of cases, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki is expected to announce further restrictions on freedom of movement sometime later today.

Additional medical gear from China set to arrive in Warsaw today

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Warsaw said earlier this month that China would supply Poland with thousands of test kits along with personal protective equipment (PPE) including face masks, suits, and gloves. Like other EU countries as well as the UK and the US, Poland is facing a shortage of PPE and equipment like respirators necessary to treat victims of the coronavirus pandemic.

The situation with hospital capacity and equipment is slightly better in Pomerania, according to the director of the Health Department of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Dr. Jerzy Karpiński. In an interview on Radio Gdańsk yesterday, Dr. Karpiński claimed that Pomerania has 500 respirators and 1,500 places in intensive care units available for incoming patients, as well as 600 places for patients under quarantine (140 are currently occupied) and 345 beds in infectious hospitals (60 are currently occupied).
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With the launch of the “air bridge” of supplies from China, officials like Karpiński are hoping to “bridge the gap” to ensure that medical staff are fully prepared with the protective gear and resources necessary to treat the rising number of COVID-19 patients.

Polish engineers design a printable ventilator

In response to a growing demand for respirators worldwide, engineers from a Polish company in Krakow have designed their own prototype of a 3D-printable ventilator.

According to designer Szymon Chrupczalski, the device (called VentilAid) is based on simple and inexpensive components and can be produced using a 3D printer for an estimated cost of PLN 200 (EUR 43).

While not intended to replace professional medical respirators, the designers have appealed to doctors, hospital staff and 3D printing experts to help upgrade the device; the blueprints are available for free online at https://www.ventilaid.org.

Theatre play set in Sopot premieres online

If you missed celebrating International Theatre Day last week because you are #zostańwdomu, Sopot’s Teatr na Plaży is currently premiering their latest spektakl “Kocham Bałytk” on Facebook and YouTube.

Straight from the Warsaw balcony of director Agnieszka Przepiórska, “I love the Baltic” offers a humorous take on holidays at the Polish seaside and the Polish tendency to find something to complain about–even in paradise. (After all, the play is set in Sopot, not Hel.)

The performance is based on the text of acclaimed author Zośka Papużanka, who composed it during her stay in Sopot at the annual Sopot Literary Festival. The play will be available to stream online until April 3rd on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teatrnaplazy/ and youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxPSDPQEEBrgLzolrKKzRQQ/

Weather

Today will be partly cloudy and cold with little chance of rain or snow but some strong breezes coming in from the northwest. Temperatures will peak around 3°C (38°F) with temps dropping slightly below zero again overnight.

Elizabeth Peck/ako