Indonesia is bracing for a third wave of COVID-19 infections as the highly transmissible omicron variant drives a surge in new cases, health authorities and experts said Saturday.

The country reported 11,588 new confirmed infections and 17 deaths on Saturday in the last 24-hour period. It was the highest daily caseload since August when Indonesia was struggling to contain a delta-driven wave.

Indonesia had recovered from last year’s spike that was among the worst in the region, and daily infections had fallen to about 200 by December. But cases are rising again just weeks after the country reported its first local omicron transmission.

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“The upsurge will be extremely fast. ... We will see a sharp rise in the near future,” Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin told a news conference Friday, adding that the current wave would likely peak at the end of February or in early March.

He said the government dedicated more beds for COVID-19 patients, ramped up tracing and testing and intensified vaccinations in all regions. But some health experts doubt the measures will be enough given the lax enforcement.

Bed occupancy rates in the capital, Jakarta, the epicenter of the omicron outbreak, rose from 5% in early January to 45% on Saturday, said Jakarta Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria. He said “omicron is moving too quickly” in the city, where more than 80% of the 10 million residents have been vaccinated.

Bed occupancy rates in the capital, Jakarta, the epicenter of the omicron outbreak, rose from 5% in early January to 45% on Saturday, said Jakarta Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria. He said “omicron is moving too quickly” in the city, where more than 80% of the 10 million residents have been vaccinated.

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