Czech Republic reports surge in virus cases

The Czech Republic has registered another steep rise in coronavirus infections, with the number of new confirmed cases surpassing 1,600 in one day for the first time.

The Health Ministry says the day-to-day increase reached a new record of 1,677 on Tuesday. The record was broken four times last week.

The capital of Prague has the highest number of people who tested positive, over 141 per 100,000.

The surge has prompted some European countries, including Slovakia, Denmark, Britain and Switzerland to impose travel restrictions for travellers from the Czech Republic.

According to government figures released on Wednesday, 333 people needed hospitalization. That number was over 400 during the first wave of the pandemic in the spring.

The Czech Republic has had 38,896 people infected with 476 deaths.