Russia reported 346 deaths from Covid-19 Wednesday, the highest single-day death toll amid a record surge in cases as authorities strive to promote prevention methods while avoiding a total lockdown.
The new figure smashes the previous record of 320 Covid-19 deaths set only 24 hours ago.
Wednesday’s increase brings Russia’s overall Covid-19 death toll, as reported by the national information center that collates daily figures from regional centers, to 26,935. Monthly state statistics and experts have suggested that the real Covid-19 death toll is at least double that figure, which is currently the 13th-highest in the world.
A record 75 patients died from coronavirus in Moscow, the epicenter of Russia’s Covid-19 outbreak that sees around a quarter of the country’s coronavirus deaths every day.
The record daily death toll comes two days after Russia saw its highest daily increase with 17,347 new coronavirus infections. It added 16,202 new infections Wednesday. Russia’s official number of coronavirus cases stands at 1,563,976, the fourth-highest in the world.
Russia announced a nationwide mask mandate starting Wednesday and advised restaurants and other night spots to close after 11 p.m. Moscow, which last week adopted a contact-tracing system requiring restaurant and nightclub visitors to register their phone numbers and scan QR codes, said it will not force its establishments to follow the guidelines.
Authorities introduced unpopular lockdown measures in the spring, including bans on non-essential walks outside, when Russia was seeing fewer than 10,000 daily Covid-19 cases on average. This time, they are opting for targeted measures and urging Russians to follow health guidelines while raising hopes of mass vaccine production in the next few months.
Russia Sets New Daily Coronavirus Record With Over 15K Cases
Russia confirmed 15,150 cases of the novel coronavirus Friday, a new daily record since the start of the pandemic as authorities grapple with the onset of a second wave.
This is the first time that Russia has confirmed more than 15,000 Covid-19 infections in a single day.
Friday’s increase pushed the overall number of Covid-19 cases in Russia to 1,369,313, the fourth-highest in the world.
Russia’s coronavirus information center confirmed 232 deaths from Covid-19 Friday, slightly fewer than Thursday’s record high of 286 deaths.
Russia’s official death toll based on daily records stands at 23,723. The federal statistics agency that publishes monthly data says the real number of fatalities is at least double that figure.
Moscow, the epicenter of Russia’s coronavirus outbreak, confirmed 5,049 cases for the first time since the height of the pandemic in mid-May.
St. Petersburg and the Moscow region on Friday confirmed 647 and 448 cases each, respectively.
Russia’s healthcare professionals warn that second wave peaks will be significantly higher than in the first wave and may not subside until mid-to-late November. Authorities say that 90% of Russia’s 176,000 hospital beds are occupied with Covid-19 patients, prompting some hospitals to halt seeing patients with other illnesses.
Around half of Russia’s regions have reinstated various restrictions, with Moscow introducing QR scans for bar and nightclub attendance and banning entrance to the metro for maskless and gloveless passengers, to slow the spread of the infection.
The World Health Organization said Thursday that Europe’s surge in coronavirus infections is of “great concern” but warned against total lockdowns to avoid deeper economic and social consequences.
