JEDDAH: More than 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, and health authorities warned that the number is expected to rise in the coming days. The spike was blamed on failure to follow safety guidelines for public gatherings and social distancing rules.

Ministry of Health spokesman Dr. Mohammed Al-Abd Al-Aly said there had been a sharp rise in confirmed coronavirus cases in the past few days, as well as an increase in the number of patients admitted to critical care units. He that 40 percent of the increase was the result of people in some parts of the country not taking the recommended precautions.

“Evaluation of the curfew will continue,” he said. “Some areas are adhering to precautionary measures and following the plans for the gradual return (to normality) — some are even advancing more than others.

“But it’s been noted that Riyadh governorate and the city of Jeddah have had more violations in the past days that have led to an increase in the number of cases. The increased number of critical cases and fatalities align with the curve that indicates the increase in the daily case count. A reason behind the increase would be social gatherings.”

While the death rate of 23 per million in Saudi Arabia remains significantly lower than the rates in many other countries, the Kingdom recorded its highest daily death count on Tuesday. There were 37 additional fatalities, raising the total to 783.

It is feared that the daily death toll could rise, given the confirmation of 3,288 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total in the country to 108,571. Riyadh accounted for the highest number of new cases, with almost 1,100.

Al-Aly said that an additional 1,815 people have recovered from the virus, bringing the total number of recoveries to 76,339. There are 31,449 active cases, 1,686 of which are receiving critical care.

Details of test centers and mobile labs are available on the Sehaty app for those who want to be tested, Al-Aly added. The Kingdom is currently in its third phase of testing, with 997,673 tests carried out so far. He said that 214 test centers across the Kingdom are available for individuals experiencing symptoms, and the locations can be found on the MAWID app.

Meanwhile, as part of a coordinated effort by the General Authority of Civil Aviation, the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Health, a further 19,000 Saudi citizens who applied to return home from other countries are expected to arrive this month.

So far, 47,500 Saudis have been repatriated from 51 destinations on 250 flights operating at 60 percent capacity. More 85,000 citizens have registered for the Awdah (return) repatriation service, which was launched on April 5.

The Saudi Food and Drug Authority said that nine factories in the Kingdom are producing more than 2 million masks of all types each day to meet the local demand, and 25 million are currently available. Each week, 69 local factories are producing more than 3.4 million liters of sanitizer, and three facilities are making 135,000 items of medical apparel.