Death toll crosses 33,000

Paris, March 29

The worldwide number of officially confirmed fatalities from the novel coronavirus rose to 33,178 on Sunday, according to a tally compiled by AFP from official sources. More than two-thirds of the deaths from coronavirus have now been recorded in Europe.

Over 667,090 declared cases have been registered in 183 countries and territories since the epidemic first emerged in China in December. Of these cases, at least 134,700 are now considered recovered.

Global count: 7,02,348
Deaths: 33,178
Recovered: 1,49,215

The tallies, using data collected by AFP offices from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), likely reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections.

Many countries are only testing cases that require hospitalisation. Italy, which recorded its first coronavirus death in February, has to date declared 10,023 fatalities, with 92,472 infections and 12,384 people recovered. Spain has 6,528 fatalities and 78,747 infections.

The other worst-hit countries are Iran with 2,640 deaths and 38,309 cases, and France with 2,314 deaths and 37,575 cases. The US has the highest number of infected people with 124,686 diagnosed cases, 2,191 deaths and 2,612 recoveries. Cases there have soared from 41,511 on Monday, making it the country with the fastest progression rate.

Since 1900 GMT Saturday, Uruguay, New Zealand and Mali have announced their first deaths. Europe has listed 3,63,766 cases and 22,259 deaths to date, Asia 1,04,596 cases and 3,761 deaths, the Middle East 46,596 cases and 2,718 deaths, the US and Canada together 1,30,120 cases with 2,250 deaths,. —AFP

Spanish Princess 1st royal victim of virus

London: Princess Maria Teresa of Spain has died after testing positive for the novel coronavirus, becoming the first royal victim of the disease, it was reported. The Princess, who was King of Spain Felipe VI’s cousin, died aged 86 in Paris on Friday, the London-based Metro newspaper said on Saturday. Her younger brother Prince Sixtus Henry of Bourbon-Parma announced her demise, as the death toll in Spain increased to 5,982.

Netherlands has over 10,000 cases

Amsterdam: The number of confirmed cases in the Netherlands passed 10,000 on Sunday evenas the rise in deaths and hospitalisations continued to show signs of slowing. In its daily update, the Netherlands’ National Institute for Health (RIVM) said confirmed cases rose by 1,104 to 10,866, an 11% increase. There were 132 new deaths, bringing the number of fatalities to 771.

Trudeau’s wife gets ‘all clear’

Ottawa: Canadian PM Justin Trudeau’s wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau said on Sunday that she has received clearance from her doctor after she was tested positive for the coronavirus earlier this month. “I am feeling so much better and have received the all clear from my physician and Ottawa Public Health,” the First Lady said in a FB post.

108-yr-old UK’s oldest victim

A 108-year-old woman, who survived the two World Wars and the outbreak of the Spanish flu, died within hours of testing positive for coronavirus, becoming the UK’s oldest fatality due to the disease, a media report said. Hilda Churchill had been self-isolating at the Kenyon Lodge care home in Salford, Greater Manchester, for more than a week, but began showing minor symptoms three or four days ago, said a report on Saturday.

Pak deploys army

Islamabad: Pakistan Army has deployed troops across the country, including Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), to assist civilian authorities in containing the spread of Covid-19. “Troops have been deployed to aid civil authorities under Article 245,” said Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar, spokesperson of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR). Only essential services are operational at the moment. As many as 12 people succumbed to the virus disease today. As many as 557 people are infected in Punjab, 469 in Sindh, 138 in Balochistan, 188 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 107 in Gilgit-Baltistan, 39 in Islamabad and two in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).