STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – The death toll from the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Sweden has topped 4,000, statistics published by the Public Health Agency showed on Monday.
The data published on the agency’s website showed that deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, had risen to 4,029 from 3,998 a day earlier while the number of confirmed cases amounted to 33,843 up from 33,459.
Sweden has taken a soft-touch approach to fighting the virus, leaving most schools, shops and restaurants open and relying on voluntary measures focused on social distancing and good hygiene.
Accumulated deaths in the pandemic in Sweden have been many times higher relative to the size of the population than in its Nordic neighbours, but still lower than in some hard-hit countries, such as Spain and Britain, that implemented strict lockdowns.
(Reporting by Johan Ahlander; editing by Niklas Pollard)
