US hits 11 million coronavirus cases, with 1 million recorded in less than a week

It took 300 days for the US to hit the 11 million mark since the first case was diagnosed in Washington state January 20

Michigan joined Washington and several other states in announcing renewed efforts to combat the pandemic

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People at a drive-in Covid-19 testing site in El Paso, Texas. Photo: Getty Images/AFP

Published: 11:37am, 16 Nov 2020Updated: 11:36am, 16 Nov 2020

The number of coronavirus cases in the United States crossed the 11-million mark on Sunday, reaching yet another grim milestone, as the third wave of Covid-19 infections surged across the country – with the most recent million coming in less than a week.

Michigan joined Washington and several other states in announcing renewed efforts to combat the pandemic, as many Americans prepare to observe a Thanksgiving holiday marked by the pandemic.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s administration on Sunday ordered high schools and colleges to stop in-person classes, closed restaurants to indoor dining and suspended organised sports – including the football playoffs – in an attempt to curb the state’s spiking case numbers.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Photo: Michigan Office of the Governor via AP

The order also restricts indoor and outdoor residential gatherings, closes some entertainment facilities and bans gyms from hosting group exercise classes. The new rules are set to last three weeks.

The directives from Michigan come on the same day that Washington Governor Jay Inslee announced the state would enforce new restrictions on businesses and social gatherings for the next month as it, too, continued to combat a rising number of cases.