Italy reports 300 plus deaths for third day running

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People wearing face masks walk on a street in Rome, Italy, on March 12, 2020. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on Wednesday evening announced the closure of all retail shops, coffee bars, pubs, restaurants, hair stylists, and beauty salons, and called on the private sector to let employees take leave or work from home as much as possible.

Rome,  Italy, Europe’s worst coronavirus-hit country and the world’s second after China, on Tuesday reported a further 345 deaths in the past 24 hours.

This was the third day running that it reported over 300 deaths – after 368 on Sunday, and 349 on Monday.

While the country’s toll has gone upto 2,503, a point of optimism was that the infection rate had slowed down, according to the BBC.

The country now has 31,506 cases – with 2,060 people in intensive care, up from 27,980 earlier. However, this was the slowest rate of increase since the country identified the presence of the virus last month.