COVID-19 deaths increased fivefold since March 1: Turkish Medical Association

The Turkish Medical Association (TTB) said on April 18 that COVID-19-related deaths in Turkey had increased nearly five-fold since March 1 as the country went through a third peak in the COVID-19 pandemic.

A municipality worker in a protective suit disinfects courtyard of the Kocatepe Mosque to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease in Ankara on April 15.

Duvar English - Reuters

The Turkish Medical Association (TTB) said on April 18 that COVID-19 deaths in Turkey had increased nearly fivefold since March 1. 

"Even official data shows that deaths increased by 4.7 times since March 1, increasing from 69 daily deaths to 318," TTB tweeted on April 18. 

The medical association said that "it's possible to reverse" a graphic they shared that showed a sharp incline in the number of daily deaths. 

"Give financial support to close collective workspaces (factories, workshops etc.) and work areas (malls etc.), shut down mandatory production lines, stop the deaths," TTB tweeted. 

Turkey recorded 318 deaths from COVID-19 in the space of a day, its highest daily total so far, data from the Health Ministry showed on April 18, and 55,802 new cases were recorded.

Turkey's official cumulative death toll stands at 35,926. Turkey currently ranks fourth in the world in the number of daily cases based on a seven-day average, according to a Reuters tally.