VILNIUS, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Ninety-eight new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Lithuanian capital Vilnius as of Wednesday noon, said the National Center for Public Health (NVSC) under the country's Health Ministry in a press release.

Due to the epidemiological situation in the capital, NVSC called on the Vilnius authorities to take measures against the pandemic, recommending limiting indoor activities such as group sports trainings, in which the wearing of respiratory protective equipment cannot be guaranteed. It also recommended to shorten the opening hours of bars.

According to Rolanda Lingiene, director of the Vilnius department of the NVSC, it is the trend of recent days that requires the measures to stop the rise of infections.

"We have cases related to visits to bars, where those cases are like a spark that ignites outbreaks in a work or educational environment. In our opinion, we simply cannot afford such 'luxury' at the moment," said Lingiene in the release.

Although the 14-day infection rate in Vilnius has remained stable at 64.6 cases per 100,000 people, the situation is beginning to change dramatically, according to NVSC.

According to the Ministry of Health, Lithuania has reported a total of 6,505 confirmed COVID-19 cases by 11:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday, with 109 deaths and 2,903 recoveries.

In the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic, countries across the globe, including France, China, Russia, Britain and the United States, are racing to develop a vaccine. The Lithuanian government has decided to purchase COVID-19 vaccine via the European Commission's joint procurement mechanism. Enditem

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