Russian military medics carried out reconnaissance at health facilities in Bergamo, where the elderly are being treated for the coronavirus, before engaging in the fight against the disease on Italian soil.
The Russian experts, sporting full protective gear, inspected four hospitals with their Italian colleagues on Friday. They examined the layout of the buildings and talked to staff to come up with a list of urgent measures needed to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and establish the scope of disinfection activities.
The Russian contingent of around 100 servicemen and 22 Kamaz trucks arrived in Italy on the weekend as the worst coronavirus-hit country in Europe requested Moscow’s assistance. The death toll in Italy reached 8,165 as of Thursday, with more than 80,500 infected.
The military virologists landed in Rome and then made a 600-kilometer march to Bergamo in the northern province of Lombardy – the heart of the outbreak.
The convoy, which was escorted by police, carried mobile laboratories, disinfection equipment, coronavirus test kits, and other tools to fight the highly contagious disease, which Italy is lacking. The hardware is capable of decontaminating up to 20,000 square meters or 360 vehicles and is expected to be a big help for Bergamo.
The coronavirus, which originated in China, has been raging around the globe since December, with over 24,000 deaths and half a million infected across 202 nations. Italy leads in the number of fatalities, while the US has the most Covid-19 cases – over 85,000.
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