Brazil makes grim milestone: 1,00,000 deaths from COVID-19
PTI, Aug 9, 2020, 10:19 AM IST
Brazil surpassed a grim milestone of 1,00,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Saturday night, and five months after the first reported case the country has not shown signs of crushing the disease.
The nation of 210 million people has been reporting an average of more than 1,000 daily deaths from the pandemic since late May and reported 905 for the latest 24-hour period.
The health ministry said that there had been a total of 30,12,412 confirmed infections with the new coronavirus death and infection tolls second only to the United States. And as in many nations, experts believe that both numbers are severe undercounts due to insufficient testing.
In a tribute to COVID-19 victims on Saturday morning, the non-governmental group Rio de Paz placed crosses on the sand on the famed Copacabana beach and released 1,000 red balloons into the sky.
“It is very sad. Those 1,00,000 represent various families, friends, parents, children,” said Marcio do Nascimento Silva, a 56-year-old taxi driver who lost his children in the pandemic and joined the tribute.
“We reach that mark [1,00,000] and many people seem to not see it, both among the government and our people. They are not just numbers but people. Death became normal,” Silva said.
President Jair Bolsonaro, who himself reported being infected, has been a consistent skeptic about the impact of the disease and an advocate of lifting restrictions on the economy that had been imposed by state governors trying to combat it.
He has frequently mingled in crowds, sometimes without a mask.
Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.
Top News
Related Articles More
Pakistan conducts airstrikes inside Afghanistan; 8 people killed
Putin is poised to extend his rule in highly orchestrated vote even as Russians quietly protest
North Korea resumes missile tests, raising tensions with its rivals after their military drills end
Putin poised to rule Russia for 6 more years after an election with no other real choices
Maldives’ jurisdiction not a concern of ‘external parties’, says President Muizzu
MUST WATCH
Latest Additions
Opposition asks EC to act against PM’s Whatsapp message on ‘Viksit Bharat’
It’s hard to believe Pakistan’s Nadeem is struggling to get a new javelin: Neeraj Chopra
IPL 2024: Virat Kohli joins RCB training camp
Mumbai: 15% water cut on Mar 19 due to inadequate level in Pise dam
JD(S) indicates displeasure over issue of seat-sharing with BJP in Karnataka for LS polls