Russia confirmed 17,340 new coronavirus cases Friday, setting a new one-day record as the country grapples with a second wave of the virus.
This is the first time that Russia has confirmed more than 17,000 Covid-19 infections in a single day.
Friday’s increase pushes the overall number of Covid-19 cases in Russia to 1,480,646, or 1% of the country’s population. Russia has the world’s fourth-highest number of Covid-19 cases.
Moscow, the epicenter of Russia’s outbreak, confirmed 5,478 new Covid-19 cases.
Russia’s national coronavirus information center said 283 people died from the disease Friday, a decrease from the record 317 Covid-19 deaths confirmed Wednesday.
Russia’s overall Covid-19 death toll based on aggregated daily figures from regional crisis centers stands at 25,525.
Monthly statistics published by Russia’s state statistics agency Rosstat place the real number of coronavirus deaths at 45,663 between April and August, the latest available month, with a mortality ratio of 4.6% against the global rate of 3-4%.
Russia has reported record numbers of new infections and deaths over the past week as disease experts warn that its regions could see a second wave that is 10 times worse than the first.
President Vladimir Putin pledged to avoid returning to strict lockdown measures like those Russia imposed in spring despite the record-setting rise in new Covid-19 cases. Authorities have introduced targeted measures at what they deem to be coronavirus hotspots to slow the spread of the disease.
Russia Surpasses 930K Coronavirus Cases
The highest number of new cases were in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Russia’s fatality rate has remained low compared to other badly-hit countries, raising speculation that Moscow could be underreporting figures.
Russian authorities began easing anti-virus measures in June ahead of a massive World War II military parade in Moscow and a nationwide vote on constitutional reforms that now allow President Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036.
Both events were initially postponed due the epidemic.
Moscow opened cinemas and theaters on Aug. 1. In the capital, masks are mandatory in stores and on public transport but not in the streets.
Several institutes in Russia are working on a coronavirus vaccine.
The Russian Defense Ministry has said it developed a «safe» vaccine following clinical trials on a group of volunteers.
The trials are ongoing, and the Defense Ministry expects clinical trials to be fully completed in the coming weeks.
