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Nations slow reopening as coronavirus pandemic stalks globe

Coronavirus infections were surging across the globe on Thursday, forcing several countries to put the brakes on reopening.

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Coronavirus infections were surging across the globe on Thursday, forcing several countries to put the brakes on reopening or impose new restrictions on their weary populations.

The number of COVID-19 cases worldwide topped 13.4 million and more than 581,000 deaths have been reported since the virus emerged late last year in China.

Venezuela, four days after announcing a loosening of restrictions, became the latest country to reimpose localised lockdown measures, including a “radical quarantine” in the capital, Caracas, while Bolivia’s La Paz department said it would undergo a four-day total quarantine.

Latin America topped 150,000 deaths on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) , becoming the world’s second hardest-hit region after ­Europe, where a total of 203,793 people have died.

Brazil accounted for roughly half of Latin America’s deaths, with more than 1200 new fatalities recorded on Wednesday bringing the total toll since the outbreak began there to 75,366.

In Ireland, Prime Minister Micheal Martin delayed the end of the lockdown because of a surge in new cases, with restrictions to remain in place until August 10 and the government also mandating the wearing of masks in shops.

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The US, meanwhile, set a record on Wednesday with more than 67,000 cases registered in the previous 24 hours.

The country has the world’s highest death toll at more than 137,000 fatalities, and officials are scrambling to roll back reopenings that were meant to revive economies. The latest research models show the number of US deaths projected to rise to above 150,000 by next month.

In the US state of Oklahoma, the Republican governor, Kevin Stitt, who has often declined to wear a mask, said he had tested positive for COVID-19.

The use of masks to slow the spread of the virus has become a political flashpoint in the US, where Donald Trump had resisted wearing one until recently and at times mocked the trend.

Mr Stitt’s state recorded a ­single-day record of 1075 new cases, while its neighbour to the south, Texas, reported 10,791 new cases and 110 new fatalities — both “new highs”.

Cases and death tolls continue to mount across the US, particularly in the south and west, with Florida and California also hard hit.

In the Asia-Pacific region, which had been somewhat successful in fighting the pandemic, there was fresh evidence of the deadly threat still posed by the virus.

Hong Kong’s bars, gyms, and beauty salons closed again on Wednesday and a ban on gatherings of more than four people came into force as the city battled a fresh outbreak.

There was alarm in Japan too, where Tokyo’s governor warned that the capital was on its highest virus alert level after a spike in ­infections.

That came after the Indian state of Bihar, with a population of around 125 million, announced a 15-day virus lockdown starting on Thursday.

Face masks will also become compulsory in England’s shops from next week, while in South Africa, where the number of cases topped 300,000, a nationwide curfew was reimposed.

On Thursday, Spain will honour its 28,400 victims at a state ceremony to be attended by top EU and World Health Organisation figures. The country is already seeing a surge in cases barely three weeks after coming out of lockdown.

AFP

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/nations-slow-reopening-as-coronavirus-pandemic-stalks-globe/news-story/1c6664ca54d85fb87476dea378605924