US toll higher than in two wars
AS THE US crossed a sombre landmark of 100 000 Covid-19 deaths, India registered record numbers yesterday while Russia continued to swiftly ease restrictions in sync with the Kremlin’s political plans, despite a continuing high pace of infection.
The once-unthinkable death toll in the US means that more Americans have died from the virus than were killed in the Vietnam and Korean wars combined.
India, home to more than 1.3billion people, reported more than 6 500 new infections as cases continued to rapidly rise. The surge comes as the nation’s two-month lockdown is set to end Sunday.
South Korea reported its biggest jump in coronavirus cases in more than 50 days, a setback that could erase some of the hard-won gains that have made it a model for the rest of the world. Health officials warned that the resurgence is getting harder to track and social distancing and other steps needed to be taken.
In Russia, high daily numbers of new infections underlined the risks of reopening the economy.
Earlier this week, President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would hold a military parade marking the 75th anniversary of the Nazi defeat in World War II on June 24, declaring that the nation had passed the peak of the pandemic which had prevented the May 9 parade from taking place.
The Kremlin also plans to go ahead with constitutional amendments that could allow Putin to stay at the helm until 2036. The government’s antiCovid-19 task force reported more than 8300 new infections yesterday, about the same as in the previous day and lower than the peak levels of more than 11000 cases earlier this month. The total number of infections topped 379 000, the world’s third-largest caseload behind the US and Brazil.
Russian officials reported 174 new deaths, repeating the highest daily toll recorded two days ago and bringing the nation’s total to 4142.
Some other countries are seeing improvements. New cases in Spain and Italy have fallen steadily for two months. China reported just two new cases yesterday, both from abroad. New Zealand has reported no new cases for six days and has just eight active cases remaining.
In the US, Las Vegas casinos and Walt Disney World have made plans to reopen, and crowds of unmasked Americans are expected to swarm beaches over the summer months. Public health officials predict a resurgence by autumn.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, issued a stern warning after watching a video of Memorial Day crowds gathered at a pool party in Missouri.
Worldwide, the virus has infected more than 5.7 million people and killed over 355 000, with the US having the most confirmed cases and deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Europe has recorded about 170 000 deaths. The true toll is widely believed to be significantly higher.
According to Johns Hopkins, the death rate per 100000 people is lower in the US than in Italy, France and Spain but higher than in Germany, China, South Korea, Singapore, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.
In Brazil, the virus has been spreading into indigenous lands and this week two virus deaths were registered in the Xingu area, one of the biggest reserves in the world. Those who died were from the Kayapo indigenous group. The community’s leader, Megaron, said he wanted President Jair Bolsonaro to stop loggers, miners and fishermen from illegally entering the territory, incursions he believes have sped up the spread of the virus.