At least 70 out of 106 residents at the Sint Elspeth nursing home in Amersfoort have been diagnosed with coronavirus, broadcaster NOS said on Monday.

The outbreak started in a closed unit for elderly patients with dementia and other psychological issues, NOS said.

In addition, five patients on the heart and lung surgery ward at the Catharina hospital in Eindhoven have died after developing the more infectious form of coronavirus first identified in Britain.

Thirteen people on the ward were diagnosed with the virus. Two of those who died were recovering from major surgery and the three others are unlikely to have been killed by the virus, officials say.

Nevertheless, ‘this outbreak shows how unpredictable and infectious the ‘British’ variant of the virus is,’ board chairman Nardo van der Meer said in a website statement.

Parties

Police handed out almost 8,000 fines to people who were breaking the coronavirus regulations last week, of which most were given to people breaking the 9pm curfew.

The total is up almost 1,000 on the previous week.

In addition, the police broke up 96 illegal parties during seven day period, including one in Hilversum attended by over 300 people. However, the start of the Carnaval season does not appear to have had a impact on the figures, police said.