Brazil has the third-highest number of novel coronavirus cases in the world, according to official figures released Monday, a troubling scenario for a country struggling to respond to the pandemic.
With 254,220 confirmed cases, Brazil has now surpassed Britain, Spain and Italy in the past 72 hours on the list of total infections, and is behind only the United States (1.5 million) and Russia (290,000).
Brazil has recorded 16,792 COVID-19 deaths, the sixth-highest toll in the world.
But experts say under-testing means the real figures could be 15 times higher or more.
President Jair Bolsonaro compares the virus to a “little flu,” condemns the “hysteria” surrounding it and is urging the country to get back to work to stop an economic crash.
State and local authorities, however, are largely calling on citizens to stay home and practice social distancing — backed by the Supreme Court, which gave them the final say in the matter.
Hospitals in several areas are operating close to full capacity, and the hardest-hit cities have begun burying victims in mass graves.
Source: Channels Television