US reports 58,858 more Covid-19 infections – latest updates

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

US CDC reports 3,355,457 cases, 135,235 deaths

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 3,355,457 cases of the coronavirus, an increase of 58,858 cases from its previous count, and said that the number of deaths had risen by 351 to 135,235.

India's tech hub back in lockdown

India's high-tech hub of Bengaluru will go back into a coronavirus lockdown for a week after a surge of infections, threatening to derail government efforts to revive a stuttering economy.

Places of worship, public transport, government offices and most shops will close again from the evening, and people will be confined to their homes, only allowed out for essential needs.

Schools, colleges and restaurants will remain shut, authorities said.

Bengaluru, home to some of the world's biggest IT firms such as Infosys, had only about 1,000 coronavirus cases in mid-June and was seen to have fared better than other parts of India in terms of testing and contact tracing.

But infections had grown to nearly 20,000 by Monday, something health experts blamed on the lifting of restrictions in June when the government, worried about the economy, ended a nationwide lockdown that had thrown millions of people out of work.

France to require face masks indoors

French President Emmanuel Macron said that face masks will soon be required in public indoor spaces to curtail the coronavirus outbreak, acknowledging that infections were again on the rise.

"I would like to make masks mandatory in all enclosed public spaces," Macron said in an interview.

"We have indications that (the outbreak) is accelerating a bit," he added, suggesting that his government would require masks in shops and public buildings from August 1.

He later posted on Twitter that "Wearing a mask in enclosed public spaces will be mandatory in the coming weeks."

Turkey records 992 infections

Turkey confirmed 1,049 more recoveries from the novel coronavirus, bringing the tally to 196,720, according to the country's health minister.

Citing Health Ministry data, Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter that a total of 992 people had contracted Covid-19 in the last 24 hours, bringing the overall number to 214,993.

"The number of new cases, which was 987 on June 11, had risen to 1,195 on the following day. Right now, we don't know about tomorrow. (But) We know that we will see the results of today's measures in an average of seven days," Koca said.

The country's death toll from the disease rose to 5,402, with 20 new fatalities reported over the last 24 hours.

Catalan authorities order local lockdown again

Spain's Catalonia region issued a new order to place around 160,000 residents of the Lleida area under confinement to stem a surge in infections, defying a judge's ruling that such a step was unlawful.

The new restrictions, which still need to be approved by another judge after the conflicting orders provoked confusion among residents, would come into force in the city of Lleida and seven towns around it on Wednesday and last for 15 days, Catalan government spokeswoman Meritxell Budo said.

The new restrictions would only allow people to leave their homes for specific activities like working, buying groceries or exercising. Gatherings of more than 10 people would be banned, she said.

Hotels would be closed, as well as restaurants and bars except for food pick-up or delivery.

Africa’s caseload climbs above 600,000

Africa’s caseload has climbed above 600,000 as the pandemic on the 54-nation continent continues to pick up speed.

Africa crossed the half-million case mark less than a week ago. It now has more than 610,000 confirmed cases. South Africa has the most cases, with more than 287,000.

South Africa’s public hospitals are already filling up, and the government on Sunday night reimposed a ban on alcohol sales with immediate effect to help free up hospital beds after a return of alcohol sales on June 1 was blamed for a surge in emergency admissions as well as an increase in the number of women and children killed.

Other countries struggling with shortages of medical equipment and personnel include Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, which has more than 33,000 cases.

Israel confirms record-high of 1,681 cases

Israel’s health ministry says the country has confirmed 1,681 new coronavirus cases, a record high.

Israel was widely praised for taking swift action early in the pandemic by closing its borders and imposing other restrictions to contain the virus’s spread. 

But since reopening the economy and schools in May following a more than monthlong lockdown, the number of new cases has steadily increased.

Israel has recorded a total of 41,235 cases. The country currently has over 21,000 active cases and at least 368 Israelis have died from the pandemic, according to health ministry figures.

Iran reports 179 deaths

Health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari raised the country's overall death toll to 13,211 with the new 179 fatalities.

She added that 2,521 people had tested positive for the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, raising the total cases confirmed to 262,173.

The rising toll has prompted authorities to make masks mandatory in enclosed public spaces and to allow the hardest-hit provinces to reimpose restrictive measures, with Tehran being one of the latest.

Philippines confirms six deaths, bringing total to 1,603

Philippines health ministry reported six new coronavirus deaths and 634 additional infections, the lowest daily increase in cases in nearly two weeks.

In a bulletin, the ministry said total deaths had increased to 1,603, while confirmed cases had reached 57,545.

France scales down Bastille Day parade

France held a scaled-down annual Bastille Day celebration, with none of the usual tanks and troops parading down Paris's Champs Elysees avenue, in a concession to the Covid-19 epidemic still stalking Europe.

Instead, President Emmanuel Macron, standing in the back of a military jeep, reviewed ranks of socially-distanced troops in the Place de la Concorde square after a flypast by military aircraft.

Turkmenistan halts passenger trains amid reports

Turkmenistan has ordered passenger trains halted from July 16 amid reports of virus in the isolated Central Asian country that has yet to declare any cases.

A statement on the state-run railway's website this week said that local passenger train travel would be suspended for a week from July 16 to July 23, but gave no reason for the stoppage.

Turkmenistan – a tightly-controlled, oil-rich ex-Soviet state – is one of the few countries in the world yet to declare any cases.

Australia tightens restrictions as cases top 10,000

Australian states tightened restrictions on movement as authorities struggle to contain a fresh outbreak in the country's southeast that has pushed the national tally of cases over 10,000.

With growing fears of a second coronavirus wave nationally, two states extended border restrictions and Australia's most populous state imposed limits on the number of people allowed in large pubs.

China reports 297 people under treatment

China said the number of people in treatment for the virus in the country has fallen to just 297, with only three new cases reported, all brought from outside the country. 

No new deaths were announced, leaving the total at 4,634 out of 83,605 cases of the disease. 

A pair of experts from the World Health Organization were in China to make arrangements for an investigation into how the pandemic may have spread after the virus was first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.

India's cases jump by 28,498

India’s number of cases jumped by another 28,000 and are fast approaching 1 million.

The 28,498 cases reported in the past 24 hours took the national total to 906,752. Cases have jumped by 100,000 in four days.

The health ministry also reported another 553 deaths in the past 24 hours, taking total fatalities up to 23,727.

Germany's cases rise by 412 bringing the total to 199,375 

The number of cases in Germany increased by 412 to 199,375, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed.

The reported death toll rose by four to 9,068, the tally showed.

Russia confirms more than 6,200 cases

Russia reported 6,248 new cases of the pandemic, pushing its confirmed national tally to 739,947, the fourth largest in the world.

Officials said 175 people had died in the last 24 hours, bringing the official death toll to 11,614.

Japan traces outbreak linked to Tokyo theatre

Tokyo health officials appealed for more than 800 theatre-goers to get tested for the novel coronavirus after a production starring Japanese boy-band members was found to be the source of at least 20 cases.

As the number of virus infections continues to rise in Japan's capital city, the Tokyo government said it was focussing on a 190-seat theatre in the Shinjuku entertainment district, where infections have also been traced to cabaret clubs.

Japan is pushing ahead with opening up parts of the country, with plans to reopen a runway at one of the country's biggest airports, even as infections persist in major cities, rural areas and US military bases.

Australia’s Queensland gets tougher with state rules

Australia’s Queensland state is getting tough with anyone who breaks the state’s rules which are in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19, saying they could be jailed for up to six months.

Current individual fines for breaking a mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine for some visitors or lying about their whereabouts range from $700 to $2,800, but “in some cases, that fine appears to not be a sufficient penalty”, Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles said.

“The maximum penalty, on the spot, will be $4,003 or up to six months’ imprisonment, and I hope that will demonstrate to the public just how serious we are about enforcing these measures,” Miles added.

Scientists warn of 'reasonable worst-case scenario' in UK

A second coronavirus wave in Britain this winter could see 120,000 deaths in hospitals alone in a "reasonable worst-case scenario", scientists have warned.

The Academy of Medical Sciences report on Tuesday, commissioned by the government's chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance, urged immediate action to mitigate a second wave.

With hospitals also battling seasonal flu cases, a second wave could eclipse the current outbreak resulting in up to 120,000 deaths between September and June next year.

The modelling does not include deaths in care homes or the wider community and assumes no government action to prevent a fresh surge in cases.

Britain has seen almost 45,000 deaths so far in the first wave, the highest toll in Europe and third only to the US and Brazil.

The latest predictions are based on an assumption that the R rate, which measures how many people an infected person is expected to infect, rises to 1.7 from September.

Singapore economy enters recession

Singapore's economy slipped into recession in the second quarter, contracting by a record 41.2 percent from the previous three months and is facing its biggest slump ever this year as coronavirus lockdown steps hammer on the trade-reliant city-state.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected a 37.4-percent slump, but the pandemic took a heavy toll on the construction sector, which plunged 95.6 percent.

On a year-on-year basis, gross domestic product plummeted 12.6 percent, preliminary data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry showed on Tuesday.

Economists had forecast a 10.5 percent contraction.

UK to make face masks mandatory in shops

The British government was on Tuesday to make wearing a face mask mandatory in shops and supermarkets in England from next week. 

"The prime minister has been clear that people should be wearing face coverings in shops and we will make this mandatory from July 24," said a statement from Boris Johnson's Downing Street office.

"There is growing evidence that wearing a face-covering in an enclosed space helps protect individuals and those around them from coronavirus," it added.

Nearly 1,000 US immigration detention centre employees test positive

More than 930 employees of private contractors running US immigration detention centres have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, according to congressional testimony given by company executives.

The heads of four companies – CoreCivic, The GEO Group, Management & Training Corp (MTC) and LaSalle Corrections – that detain immigrants on contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), reported the infections among employees in response to questions from lawmakers.

Lawmakers have raised concerns about the spread of the virus inside nearly 70 centres across the country. 

More than 3,000 immigrants in ICE custody have tested positive for Covid-19, although some have recovered or been released.

Latin America, Caribbean second worst-hit region

Latin America and the Caribbean became the world’s second most affected region behind Europe by the coronavirus in the number of deaths.

The death toll in the region has reached 145,900 and cases stand at 3.3 million.

California rolls back reopening

California drastically rolled back its reopening plans as coronavirus cases surged across dozens of US states and the World Health Organization warned that too many nations are mismanaging their pandemic response.

Governor Gavin Newsom ordered all indoor restaurants, bars, and movie theatres to close again across California – by far America's richest and most populous state, with a larger economy than all but four countries.

Churches, as well as gyms, shopping malls, hair salons, and non-essential offices, must also shut indoor operations in half of the Golden State's worst-hit and most densely populated counties, including Los Angeles.

"We're moving back into a modification mode of our original 'stay-at-home' order," said Newsom, whose state was the first to close down in March, but began easing restrictions in May.

Brazil registers new 733 deaths

Brazil recorded 20,286 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours as well as 733 deaths, the Health Ministry said on Monday.

Brazil has registered nearly 1.9 million cases since the pandemic began, while cumulative deaths total 72,833, according to the ministry.