Joshua Parfitt
SPAIN has seen an ‘abnormal’ 56.5% rise in recorded deaths for the period from March 17 to April 7, according to a recent study.
Spain’s public health research centre – the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) – estimated the country has seen 13,954 more deaths than normal.
The report publish this week estimated that, based on death records from nationwide civil registers, Spain should have seen 24,684 fatalities between March 17 to April 7.
But a sharp peak in deaths brought total deaths recorded 56.1% up from the expected to hit 38,637.
The report also highlights the abnormal spike in deaths from regions worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic: Madrid saw a 149.4% rise, Castilla La Mancha a 163.8% rise, and La Rioja a 133.3% rise between March 17 and April 7.
The 13,954 surplus deaths correspond to an official coronavirus deathtoll of 13,798 as of April 7, the date of publication of the report.
An analysis from Spain’s leading institution for computer science – the Universitat Polytecnica de Catalunya – suggested COVID-19 deaths could still be higher than officially reported.
This is because the lockdown would likely cause a drop in deaths resulting from mobility, such as car crashes, and social interaction, such as influenza – indicating the baseline estimated 24,684 fatalities could be way off.
It comes as the press and opposition parties in Spain have claimed Pedro Sanchez’s government does not have the correct figures on coronavirus deaths.
El Mundo on Wednesday ran a front page claiming the correct figures may be ‘double’ those official reported by the Ministry of Health.
