US hit by 55,000 infections in one day
Trump’s handling of virus under scrutiny as new global record exceeds Brazil’s
The United States reported more than 55,000 new Covid-19 cases, a new daily global record for the coronavirus pandemic, as infections rose in a majority of states.
A surge in coronavirus cases over the past week has put President Donald Trump’s handling of the crisis under the microscope and led several governors to halt plans to reopen their states after strict lockdowns.
The daily US tally stood at 55,274 on Thursday, topping the previous single-day record of 54,771 set by
Brazil on June 19.
Coronavirus cases are rising in 37 out of 50 US states including Florida, which confirmed more than 10,000 new cases on Thursday. That marked the state’s largest daily spike so far and a level that exceeded single-day tallies from any European country at the height of the outbreak there.
California, another epicentre, saw positive tests climb 37% with hospitalisations up 56% over the past two weeks.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican who has previously resisted calls to make face masks mandatory, on Thursday ordered them to be worn in all counties with over 20 coronavirus cases.
“In the past few weeks, there has been a swift and substantial spike in coronavirus cases,” Abbott said in a videotaped message. “We need to refocus on slowing the spread. But this time, we want to do it without closing down Texas again.”
Texas reported nearly 8,000 new cases on Thursday.
New infections were rising in 37 out of 50 US states in the past 14 days compared with the two weeks prior, according to an analysis. The United States has now recorded nearly 129,000 deaths, nearly a quarter of the known global total.
The wave of new cases has several governors halting or back-pedaling on plans to reopen their states after months of strict lockdowns, closing beaches and cancelling fireworks displays over the upcoming Independence Day weekend.
“We are not out of this crisis. We are still in the first wave of this crisis. It requires some level of personal responsibility,” California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, said at a daily briefing on the pandemic. —