Global lockdown tightens as Covid-19 death toll rises
PARIS - Lockdowns aimed at halting the march of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic have extended worldwide as the US outbreak continued to accelerate with the death toll there passing 3, 000.
Despite slivers of hope in stricken Italy, tough measures that have confined two-fifths of the globe's population to their homes are being broadened.
Moscow and Lagos joined the roll call of cities around the world with empty streets, while Virginia and Maryland became the latest US states to announce stay-at-home orders, followed quickly by Washington DC.
A US military medical ship steamed into New York, where it will relieve pressure on the city's badly stretched health system. A field hospital was also set up in Central Park yesterday.
The scale and speed of the US pandemic continued to expand, with the death toll topping 3, 000 out of 163, 000 known infections – the highest case count for any single country.
President Donald Trump sought to reassure Americans that authorities were ramping up distribution of desperately needed equipment like ventilators and personal protective gear.
The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases around the world rose above 784, 000, with 413, 000 of those in Europe, which also has the lion's share of the deaths, according to an AFP tally.
Tanzania confirmed its first coronavirus death yesterday, health minister Ummy Mwalimu said in a statement.
The 49-year-old Tanzanian male, who had pre-existing conditions, had been admitted to Mloganzila Hospital in Dar Es Salaam for treatment. Tanzania had 19 confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Monday.
World leaders - several of whom have been stricken or forced into isolation - are still grappling for ways to deal with a crisis that is generating economic and social shockwaves unseen since World War II.
Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed "closer cooperation" and addressed plunging oil prices in a Monday call, the Kremlin said.
Putin's government was getting to grips with its own outbreak, with the Russian strongman urging residents of Moscow to respect a lockdown that has closed all non-essential shops, and left Red Square deserted.