Turkey opens new hospital for COVID-19 patients in Istanbul

ISTANBUL – Turkey has inaugurated a new hospital specially built for COVID-19 patients in the country's biggest city Istanbul.

The hospital was constructed in the Sancaktepe district on the Asian side of the city and named after Feriha Oz, a Turkish doctor, who recently lost her life due to COVID-19.

The construction of the hospital with 1,008-bed capacity was completed in 45 days with the work of around 4,000 workers.

The hospital would serve the country's health tourism when the pandemic is over, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the inauguration ceremony.

Turkey has been building another hospital to be used for treating COVID-19 patients in the Ataturk airport area on the European side of Istanbul. 

Prof. Feriha Oz Emergency Hospital established in 45 days in order to respond to emergencies like coronavirus pandemic in Istanbul.🇹🇷

🏨 75.000 m² indoor area
🛏 1008 patient beds
🩺 16 operating rooms
🔬 432 intensive care beds pic.twitter.com/xyYmGFaNhL

— Republic of Turkey Directorate of Communications (@Communications) May 29, 2020

Meanwhile, Turkey's airline companies resumed their domestic operations with a limited number of flights after two months of closure over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turkey's national flag carrier Turkish Airlines (THY) and the Pegasus Airlines currently only resume the flights from Turkey's biggest city Istanbul to a few major cities.

The THY's first aircraft departed to the capital Ankara from Istanbul Airport, and a plane with Pegasus Airlines flew to the western province of Izmir from Sabiha Gokcen Airport in Istanbul in the morning.

The THY will begin to fly to other cities on June 4 and launch its international flights on June 10.

Pegasus administration, meanwhile, said the company would soon start its domestic and international flights without revealing further details.

Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey would enter a new normalization period on June 1 as the figures related to COVID-19 cases tend downwards.

The death toll from the coronavirus in Turkey has climbed to 4,540 and the number of confirmed cases totaled 163,942, according to the figures announced by the Health Ministry on Monday.