THE number of coronavirus deaths worldwide passed one million on Monday – more than H.I.V. or malaria, influenza, cholera and measles combined during the same 10-month period.
Having initially infected residents in Wuhan, China, COVID-19 may eventually overtake tuberculosis and hepatitis as the world’s deadliest infectious disease.
The coronavirus crisis has devastated the global economy, tested world leaders, and pitting science against politics.
Monday’s milestone was reported by Johns Hopkins University and relates to a population the size of Jerusalem or Austin, Texas.
Due to inconsistent reporting, testing, and even suspected concealment by some countries, the true death toll from the virus is expected to be even higher.
Each day, the number continues to rise.
Nearly 5,000 deaths are report globally each day, on average, with parts of Europe starting to experience second waves of the virus.
GROWING DEATH TOLL
Experts have said that they expect the U.S., which accounts for more than 200,000 COVID deaths, could suffer a similar fate.
Mark Honigsbaum, author of The Pandemic Century: One Hundred Years of Panic, Hysteria and Hubris, told the Associated Press: “I can understand why… numbers are losing their power to shock.”
He added: “But I still think it’s really important that we understand how big these numbers really are.”
The virus first appeared in late 2019, when cases started to rising in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
The first coronavirus death was report on January 11 – but it wasn’t until two weeks later that local authorities then locked down the city.
By that point, travelers had come and gone, leading global leaders to devise strategies about how to contain the virus.
Countries such as Germany, New Zealand and South Korea worked effectively to contain the disease, while others, such as the United States and Brazil, saw cases rise rapidly.
New York City saw its health system overwhelmed with cases, as well as countries like the United Kingdom and Italy.
President Donald Trump has come under fire for his handling of the virus, which has seen America account for roughly one in five deaths, despite its wealth and medical resources.
Brazil has recorded the second-highest number of deaths, with around 142,000.
Despite its lethality, the virus has claimed less lives than the Spanish Flu, which killed an estimated 40 to 50 million people worldwide over two years roughly a century ago.
In Africa, the virus has also impacted less people than early modeling predicted.
Fears now turn to winter in the Northern Hemisphere, with a vaccine still likely to be months away.
Did you miss our previous article…
https://covidnineteen.wiki/united-kingdom/local-lockdowns-could-be-enforced-within-24-hours-due-to-data-from-nhs-covid-19-app/