Heru Andriyanto, Jakarta – Indonesia set a new record in daily number of coronavirus cases on Thursday amid a dramatic single-day surge in West Java and Papua.

The country has recorded 8,369 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, 33.54 percent higher than the previous high of 6,267 cases reported just four days ago. The new one-day high brings the total number of confirmed cases to 557,877.

West Java saw a dramatic rise of 1,648 cases, way above its previous record of around 900 cases back on July 9.

The province of 50 million people now has a total 55,807 cases, the fourth-largest nationwide.

Papua, home to 4 million people, registered 1,755 cases to take its total to 11,879. The country's easternmost province has never reported more than 300 cases in a single day before.

It has gone through 14 days without reporting a new case throughout last month.

Jakarta, the hardest hit by the outbreak, added 1,153 cases for a total of 140,238.

East Java, which has the second-highest number of confirmed cases since the outbreak, saw another 564 infections, the province's highest since August 29. It has accumulated a total of 63,337 cases.

Statistical issue

The National Covid-19 Task Force blamed today's record-breaking number on poor coordination between central and provincial governments in real time statistical updates.

Task force spokesman Wiku Adisasmito said that in some cases, the latest updates were actually an accumulation of previous numbers not recorded earlier.

"For example, Papua reported 1,755 cases today, which actually are the accumulation of its daily counts since November 17," Wiku said in a video conference.

The similar problem has occurred in Central and West Java, he added.

However, the explanation couldn't overturn the fact that new infections are trending up in the archipelago in line with improved testing capacity at the provincial level.

Bali saw a new high of 230 cases to bring the province's total to 14,420.

The surge is slowing in Central Java after it recorded a provincial record of 2,036 cases four days ago. But daily number in the province remains significant, with another 767 cases on Thursday to take its total to 58,337, smaller only than that of Jakarta and East Java.

Other hotspots like East Kalimantan, South Sulawesi, Riau and West Sumatra continue to report three-digit daily numbers.

South Sulawesi is ranked fifth among worst-hit provinces with a total of 21,057 cases, 136 more from yesterday. It's the fifth day in a row the province reported more than 100 cases.

East Kalimantan registered 313 cases, the province's highest since Oct. 18, to bring its total to 20,365.

The recent surge in newly cases has led the total number of active cases to a new high, amounting to 77,969 as of Thursday.

Death toll

The seven-day average of coronavirus-related deaths hit a new record, standing at 143.

Indonesia has recorded 156 Covid deaths in the 24-hour period, bringing the total death toll to 17,355. The daily death toll has been in three digits for the last 12 days, equaling the previous record of a three-digit run on Sept. 14-25.

East Java has the biggest casualty toll in the Indonesian outbreak, with a total of 4,493 Covid deaths.

Jakarta comes next with a total of 2,732 deaths, 26 more from a day earlier, followed by Central Java (2,409).

West Java was at a distant fourth with a total of 947 deaths.

Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/news/indonesia-adds-8300-new-covid-cases-33-pct-higher-than-previous-recor