Covid 19 coronavirus: Sweden running out of intensive care beds as cases soar

Sweden is running out of intensive care beds amid soaring cases of Covid-19 and may have to reach out to other nations, an expert has warned.

Intensive care units in the capital, Stockholm, hit hardest during the country's second wave, hit 99 per cent capacity this week, the Daily Mail reports.

Sweden, which remained staunchly lockdown-free while most of the world adopted restrictions, may soon need to reach out to its neighbours for help.

Sten Rubertsson, head of Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare, has warned that the country may have to reach out to neighbours such as Finland, which has made use of lockdowns, for help.

According to local media, Sweden has about 700 intensive care beds.

While the country has not yet exceeded that capacity, the beds are scattered across the country and the expert has pointed out that could soon become a problem, as big cities such as Stockholm hit their limits.

The capital is already operating at maximum capacity.

The Swedish government has only just introduced restrictions after a spike of cases. Photo / Getty Images

Other badly affected cities include Malmo and Gothenburg, which are close to reaching their limits.

Finland has already said it is ready to help its neighbour.

"With intensive care, with test capacity, with everything we can. We are here for you," Finland's Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo said a few months ago.

Sweden made headlines this year as it shunned lockdowns and even social distancing and mask-wearing all through the first few months of the pandemic.

Virus expert Anders Tegnell previously predicted avoiding lockdown would make Sweden better prepared for winter, as he believed the country's population would develop a natural level of herd immunity.

Sweden enjoyed a mostly lockdown-free 2020 while most of the rest of the world was under restrictions. Photo / Getty Images

In fact, Sweden has been hit especially hard by the virus second wave, and at one point had the fastest-growing outbreak anywhere in Europe.

Sweden has so far had more than 300,000 cases of Covid-19 and more than 7000 deaths. Finland, which adopted lockdown restrictions, had about 30,000 cases and 400 deaths.

The numbers have led Sweden to backtrack on its strategy and adopt night-time curfews and a ban on large gatherings.