Coronavirus latest: 600,000 dead around the world, including 140,000 in US

Worldwide, more than 14.3 million coronavirus cases have been recorded, and the death toll has doubled from two months ago

In the hardest-hit US counties, officials are running out of places to store bodies amid fears the pandemic is spinning out of control

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US Army personnel wearing protective masks guide residents to a drive-through Covid-19 testing site in El Paso, Texas. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 1:56pm, 19 Jul 2020Updated: 11:31pm, 19 Jul 2020

Deaths in the United States from the coronavirus pandemic surpassed 140,000 on Sunday as cases continued to rise in 43 out of 50 states, while fresh outbreaks in Spain have forced the country’s second-biggest city back into lockdown.

While the US leads global infections, South Africa now ranks as the fifth worst-hit country with 350,879 cases – roughly half of all those confirmed on the African continent.

On Sunday Hong Kong issued tougher new rules on wearing face masks as cases surged, Spain closed overcrowded beaches and Germany reported another outbreak at a slaughterhouse. India, which has now confirmed more than 1 million infections, reported a 24-hour record of 38,902 new cases.

Pope Francis said “the pandemic is showing no sign of stopping” and urged compassion for those whose suffering during the outbreak has been worsened by conflicts.

The World Health Organisation said that 259,848 new infections were reported on Saturday, its highest one-day tally yet.

Confirmed global virus deaths risen to nearly 603,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins, with the US topping the list, followed by more than 78,000 in Brazil. Europe as a continent has seen about 200,000 deaths.

Since late June, the US has seen a resurgence in new cases and now, six weeks later, deaths have also begun rising, with the country losing about 5,000 people to the virus every week. By contrast, neighbouring Canada has reported 8,800 deaths in total since the pandemic started.