Global deaths linked to the coronavirus passed 200,000 on
Saturday, while confirmed cases of the virus are expected to hit 3
million in coming days, according to a Reuters tally.
FILE
PHOTO: Michael Neel, funeral director of of All Veterans Funeral and
Cremation, wearing full PPE, looks at the U.S. flag on the casket of
George Trefren, a 90 year old Korean War veteran who died of the
coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in a nursing home, in Denver, Colorado,
U.S. April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Rick Wilking
More than half of the fatalities have been reported by the United States, Spain and Italy.
The
first death linked to the disease was reported on Jan. 10 in Wuhan,
China. It took 91 days for the death toll to pass 100,000 and a further
16 days to reach 200,000, according to the Reuters tally of official
reports from governments.
By comparison, there are an estimated 400,000 deaths annually from malaria, one of the world’s most deadly infectious diseases.
Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: open tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.
The
United States had reported more than 52,400 deaths as of Saturday
morning, while Italy, Spain and France have reported between
22,000-26,000 fatalities each.
Of the top 20 most severely
affected countries, Belgium has reported the highest number of
fatalities per capita, with six deaths per 10,000 people, compared to
4.9 in Spain and 1.6 in the United States.
Around 8% of all
cases reported in the United States have been fatal, while more than 10%
of cases reported in Spain and Italy have resulted in deaths.
However
those rates would be considerably lower if the infection totals
included the many cases of the illness that go unreported - since not
everyone with symptoms is tested.
Asia and Latin America have
each reported more than 7,000 deaths, while the Middle East has reported
upwards of 8,800. The current toll in Africa is around 1,350.
The
global death toll has continued to grow at a rate of 3-4% per day over
the past 10 days, though that rate has slowed since the beginning of the
month.
The true number of fatalities is expected to be higher as
many countries have not included deaths recorded in nursing homes and
other locations outside hospitals.
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