More alarming figures are emerging from Spain where officials have announced another 769 deaths overnight, a new record in the number of fatalities recorded in 24 hours.
HuffPost Spain reports (in Spanish) that the death toll in the country now stands at 4,858. The total number of those infected rose to 64,059 from 56,188 on Thursday.
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for coronavirus, Downing Street has announced. No.10 had previously said Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, would take over Johnson’s duties should the prime minister become too ill to remain in charge.
“Over the last 24 hours I have developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus,” Johnson wrote on Twitter. “I am now self-isolating, but I will continue to lead the government’s response via video-conference as we fight this virus. Together we will beat this. #StayHomeSaveLives.”
Delhi has begun placing quarantine stickers on the houses of people suspected of being infected with coronavirus, leading to harassment and vilification of the city’s residents, HuffPost India reports.
A photo of a sticker placed on a flight attendant’s house with her personal details has been circulated on WhatsApp, and a video in which she is identified by her name and falsely called COVID-19 positive has been shared on social media.
“My safety and my image are under attack. People are saying that I’m corona-positive and humiliating me. One can’t live like this. Society will boycott you if they think you are corona-positive,” she said.
HuffPost India reports that the flight attendant is among many victims of public shaming and ostracising occurring in the country as the number of coronavirus cases rises.
Hundreds have died and more than 1,000 have been sickened in Iran by ingesting methanol in the mistaken belief that it protects against the new coronavirus, AP reports.
“Other countries have only one problem, which is the new coronavirus pandemic. But we are fighting on two fronts here,” said Dr. Hossein Hassanian, an adviser to Iran’s Health Ministry. “We have to both cure the people with alcohol poisoning and also fight the coronavirus.”
The Islamic Republic has reported over 32,300 cases and more than 2,300 deaths from the virus.
New York City public health officials said Thursday that nearly half of all coronavirus infections in the city were in residents 44 and younger.
According to data up until 5 p.m., officials said 44% of infections were in the 18-to-44 age bracket, a total of 10,145 cases. And 34% percent were in people ages 45 to 64, with 19% among those 65 and older. The report adds to growing concern that the coronavirus doesn’t primarily affect older people and those with underlying health conditions.
The risk of dying, however, remains significantly higher in older people and those with underlying conditions.
— Nick Visser
For earlier updates on the pandemic, go here.
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