US, world set records for new COVID-19 cases
Virus making rounds for 2nd time at White House
The United States set a record of more than 126,400 confirmed COVID-19 cases in a single day Friday, and the seven-day rolling average of new daily cases in the U.S. is approaching 100,000 for the first time, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
The news came as numerous states reported record caseloads in recent days and as European countries tightened restrictions, protests against which were held in the Netherlands and Germany.
COVID-19 also struck at the White House again. President Donald Trump’s chief of staff Mark Meadows tested positive for the coronavirus, two senior administration officials confirmed Friday. They offered no details on when Meadows came down with the virus or his current condition. His diagnosis was first reported by Bloomberg News.
One administration official said several other staffers also tested positive.
Total U.S. cases since the pandemic began are nearing 10 million, and confirmed cases globally are approaching 50 million. Worldwide infection numbers are also setting records, reaching 400,000 daily confirmed cases Oct. 15, 500,000 on Oct. 26 and 600,000 Friday.
The virus has killed more than 236,000 Americans. The seven-day rolling average for daily deaths in the U.S. has risen in the past two weeks from 772 on Oct. 23 to 911 on Friday.
In Texas, a district judge upheld an order from El Paso County’s top elected
official shutting down businesses while the region fights an alarming surge in COVID-19 cases.
The decision from Judge Bill Moody of El Paso’s 34th District Court came as federal military medical teams deployed to the border region at Texas’ request.
The county’s top elected official, El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego, has ordered a two-week shutdown of nonessential activities.
In making his decision, Moody pointed out that during the Spanish flu pandemic in the early part of the 20th century, city and county elected officials had authority to respond as they “thought was necessary to protect the health and financial interests of their individual communities.”
Chris Hilton, an attorney with the Texas attorney general’s office, said the
state would appeal.
In other developments:
Malaysia’s government said it would expand movement restrictions to most parts of the country after coronavirus cases tripled in a month. Another 1,168 new cases were reported Saturday, bringing the total to 39,357 – compared to just 13,993 cases a month ago. The death toll stands at 282.
Iran reported 9,460 new cases, breaking its previous single-day record earlier this week. The health ministry registered 423 deaths Saturday, pushing its confirmed death toll to 37,832, the highest in the Middle East.
Russia reported its death toll has exceeded 30,000. The national coronavirus task force said 364 people died Friday, bringing the total to 30,251 since the start of the pandemic.