- Thursday, March 19, marked the worst day of the coronavirus outbreak so far.
- People around the world woke up to 20,584 new infections and 973 new deaths recorded the night before- marking a new record. Health authorities typically release these numbers at the end of the day.
- Either in terms of deaths or infections, Iran, Spain, Italy, Malaysia, and the US on Wednesday all reported their worst days so far.
- A simple line graph tracking new cases around the world suggests the rate of increase will get worse on Thursday and Friday.
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For much of the world, Thursday, March 19, marked the worst day of the coronavirus outbreak so far, both in terms of deaths and infections.
The virus that emerged in China last December has now spread to every continent bar Antarctica, and left more than 9,000 people dead.
The World Health Organization officially declared it a pandemic on March 11. Europe is currently the new epicenter of the virus, with Italy the second-worst affected country outside China.
By the end of Wednesday, a record 20,584 new cases of the coronavirus were reported worldwide, taking the overall total to 218,822. (Of this figure, 85,971 people have recovered.)
During the same period, 973 new deaths were reported - also a record daily leap.
Health authorities officially around the world typically release new infection and death tolls at the end of each day. Here's what we woke up to on Thursday:
- Italy, the most hard-hit country so far, reported its worst day so far on Wednesday, declaring 475 people had died.
- Iran reported 147 new deaths on Wednesday, according to Reuters - also a record number.
- The US also reported its worst day so far, with 2,300 new cases on Wednesday alone, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
- Spain reported 2,943 new cases of the coronavirus, a 25% rise and its worst yet, alongside 105 new deaths, according to Spain's health ministry.
- Malaysia reported a record 110 new cases on Thursday, taking the total to 900.
We will likely see new records being broken soon.
The line graph below, which tracks daily new infections around the world, suggests the rate of increase will get worse on Thursday and Friday.
Meanwhile, China reported no new cases of the coronavirus for the first time on Thursday, indicating that the country may be on the home stretch toward containing the outbreak.
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