The average number of new weekly coronavirus infections in Brussels dropped for the first time in days during the weekend, figures show.
On Sunday, the weekly average of new infections stood at 112 per day, down from the 130 recorded late last week, a drop of around 13%.
With the drop in new cases, the number of municipalities above the new-case alarm threshold set by regional officials has also dropped from 13 to 12.
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Currently, Saint-Josse and Koekelberg lead other municipalities in Brussels in terms of the number of new weekly infections, with an incidence rate of 120 and 118, respectively.
They are followed by Molenbeek (100), Schaerbeek (82), Jette (80), Ganshoren (76), Uccle (71), the City of Brussels (65), Anderlecht (64), Berchem Sainte-Agathe and Evere (60) and Forest (52).
Both Ixelles and Saint-Gilles have seen their average number of new weekly cases dropped below the threshold, set at 50 new weekly cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Saint-Gilles' incidence rate slid from 72 on Thursday to 36 on Monday, the latest figures by health institute Sciensano show, while Ixelles' decreased to 40.
The decrease aligns Brussels with a trend of declining new infections recorded throughout Belgium during the past week, with figures showing a decline of 14% in the number of new cases detected, according to Bruzz.
Despite the decline, the national average still remains above 400 new daily cases, a figure which virologists have warned is still too high as Belgium prepares to send all students back to the classroom from Tuesday.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
