Dozens of ambulances were waiting in line to drop COVID-19 patients at the emergency ward of the biggest hospital in Bucharest on Monday, October 11. (Photo source: Inquam Photos / Octav Ganea)

The fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has hit Romania stronger than the previous ones after the restrictions were relaxed over the summer while two-thirds of the population hasn’t been vaccinated. In the last 14 days, Romania officially reported over 166,000 new COVID-19 infection cases, with the daily total ranging between 8,000 and 15,000. However, health experts estimate that the actual number of cases is much bigger as many infected people don’t get tested and treat themselves at home.

This is why many patients call the ambulance when they are already severely ill. As a result, the emergency wards of the Romanian hospitals are full of patients waiting for a place in the intensive care units (ATI) to get free. Meanwhile, all the ATI units in the country are full, with over 1,600 people under treatment, according to the official report on Monday, October 11. The total number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Romania is close to 17,000.

Mortality is also at a high in Romania since the start of the pandemic. Over 3,100 people died in the last 14 days, according to official data, which counts for 8% of the total number of victims since the beginning of the pandemic.

This video report by Recorder shows the atmosphere in the emergency unit of the University Emergency Hospital in Bucharest: