Amid a flurry of developments, from the state of the economy to the Ukraine-Russia war, the coronavirus seems to have taken a back seat on the Turkish public's agenda. The decline in the number of daily cases to 2021 levels may have played a role as well. But the pandemic, in its second year, continues to claim lives although to a much lesser degree.

When the country reported its first COVID-19 case on March 11, 2020, few would have thought that the pandemic was here to stay. Since then, the country has reported about 14 million cases and at least 94,000 people have died of the deadly infection. Today, hope trumps worries in the country thanks to the increasing number of vaccinated people due to the efficient rollout of the vaccination program and dominance of a less worrying strain of COVID-19: omicron. Indeed, authorities recently moved to scrap the outdoor mask-wearing rule among others, in light of the downward trend in the figures.

Two years ago, when the virus was colloquially and unfairly called the "Chinese virus" due to its origins, Turkish authorities announced the country's "patient zero," an unidentified male who had recently traveled to an unknown European country. It was the same day the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a "global pandemic." Health authorities were already readying measures since the coronavirus was suspected in a number of cases around the world in the early days of 2020. Six days later, Turkey reported the first death from coronavirus, an 89-year-old patient who came into contact with another patient infected in China. Back then, the total number of cases was only 98 in the country.

The public was confused and some believed it would be temporary, like the swine flu epidemic but in the ensuing two years, the gravity of the situation changed the lives of millions. The government's measures, mostly in parallel with the world's response to the pandemic, radically altered the lifestyles of the citizens of the country. From the suspension of flights with certain countries to curfews and remote education to the closure of restaurants and cafes and the cancelation of mass public events, the pandemic restrictions became the new normal for months. Protective masks, previously worn by a few people who suffer from chronic diseases, became an inseparable part of the everyday dress code for everyone from children to centenarians. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests also became part of daily life for people fearing infections. Elsewhere, the public sought to get used to the app Hayat Eve Sığar (Life Fits Into Home), which created a unique digital code assigned to each citizen that allowed them to enter certain venues, from shopping malls to public institutions and certified that they were not infected.

Turkey's first experience with curfews, something normally imposed during notorious coups in modern Turkey's short history and once during a nationwide census, came on April 10, 2020. The northern province of Zonguldak was the first to be subjected to a curfew due to the high number of infections. Soon after, curfews spread across the entire country, just like the virus. Based on trends in the number of cases, they were a flexible weapon for the government to combat the pandemic. At times, curfews were limited to weekends and later, nighttime curfews during weekdays were also imposed. Senior citizens and people with chronic illnesses did not leave their homes at all for a long time. In April 2021, Turkey imposed its first continuous lockdown, for 17 days, in the face of a climbing toll from the coronavirus and managed to bring down the numbers to a controllable level.

The pandemic, still in effect, had reached its first peak in December 2020, with 33,198 cases on Dec. 8. On Dec. 23, 2020, Turkey also reported the highest death toll in a day from COVID-19 in 2020, at 259.

One month later, Turkey finally received its first shipment of vaccines and launched a mass vaccination program on Jan. 14, 2021. Health care workers, who have always been at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic were the first to be inoculated with CoronaVac, an inactive vaccine brought from China. The vaccination program gradually expanded to other groups, starting with the elderly population. On April 2, 2021, Turkey included a messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech in its vaccination arsenal. In June 2021, the vaccination program became available for all citizens at the age of 18 and above. Since Jan. 2021, more than 146 million doses have been administered against coronavirus in the country.

The year 2021 also marked baby steps toward "normalization" or removal of restrictions stemming from the pandemic for the country. It was not a smooth process, with cases hitting new highs or lows but brought relief for millions frustrated by months of restrictions. In Jan. 2021, the highest number of daily cases was around 14,500 but in March, they hit a new high of 39,302. In April 2021, Turkey reported the highest number of daily cases since the onset of the pandemic, at 63,082 on April 16. A record number of 394 people died on April 30, 2021, just one day after the start of the 17-day lockdown.

The strict lockdown was followed by a "gradual normalization" process, from a drop in curfew hours to the limited reopening of restaurants, cafes and similar venues. On July 1, 2021, Turkey ended all curfews, reopened more businesses and eased restrictions on intercity travel. A few months later, students were back to school for the first time for in-person education, another sign of the easing of pandemic-related restrictions.

Yet, just when the public thought that the worst was over, new variants started making their way into the country. First came the delta variant, which dominated the cases and then the omicron variant. Omicron prevailed longer than delta and today, is responsible for most cases. On Feb.4, 2022, Turkey reported the highest number of daily cases, at 111,157, courtesy of omicron, only about two months after the number of daily cases dropped as low as 16,000. Daily fatalities also rose and hit this year's record at 309 on Feb. 15. However, omicron is not considered as much of a concern as earlier strains. According to experts, this strain mostly affects senior citizens or people with chronic illnesses, unlike other variants which resulted in hospitalizations regardless of age or health status. As a matter of fact, hospitalizations from COVID-19 significantly decreased with people mostly recovering from the disease with mild symptoms and isolating at home.