The triangle formed by the Helsinki, Oulu and Turku regions brings bad news for the Finns again, in the form of deaths.
On Tuesday 12 May, the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) reported 19 more coronavirus (koronavirus, in Finnish) infections. With them, the total number of laboratory-diagnosed cases rose to 6,003.
The health agency also reported 4 more deaths associated with the disease, bringing the total number of fatalities in Finland to 275.
The region of Helsinki-Uusimaa remains the epicenter and worst-hit area. According to official figures, to date, 4,278 cases of Covid-19 have been found in the capital metropolitan area. Of them, 2,220 have been diagnosed in the city of Helsinki.
However, health authorities admit the actual number of cases may be much higher, since people with mild symptoms are not generally tested.
New deaths in Helsinki, Turku and Oulu
To date, the Helsinki University hospital special catchment area (HYKS) reported 223 fatalities (81% of the country's total). This means four out of every five deaths caused by coronavirus have occurred in the Helsinki hospital area.
Of the 4 deaths reported on Tuesday, 2 occurred in the capital region, 1 in the Turku University Catchment area + Åland (TYKS) and 1 in the Oulu hospital area (OYS).
Source: THL.
Helsinki-Uusimaa is also the region with the highest incidence of infections: there are already 253.7 diagnosed cases per 100,000 inhabitants. This rate grows everyday.
For the whole country, the average incidence rate is less than half that in Helsinki: 108 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to THL.
In intensive care units
On Tuesday, the official number of patients hospitalized due to coronavirus nationwide was 152. And the number of people in intensive care units was 34.
According to a preliminary estimate by THL, there are at least 4,300 people who may have already recovered from the disease.
To date, Finnish laboratories have taken samples from approximately 126,500 people.
