Worldwide COVID-19 death toll crosses 1 million, US worst hit with 205,000 deaths

The worldwide COVID-19 death toll exceeded 1 million on Tuesday nearly ten months into the pandemic as recorded by John Hopkins University. Over 33 million confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported worldwide since the beginning of the pandemic, as per the study. John Hopkins University also noted that over 23 million people have recovered from the deadly virus. According to the global tally, the US is the worst affected country by coronavirus followed by India, Brazil, Russia and Colombia.

The coronavirus death count is four times more than the number of people killed in the earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean in 2004. Despite the zooming COVID-19 cases and the increasing death toll, experts believe that there are a large number of cases that go unreported due to problems faced in testing and reporting and in some cases concealment. 

Dr Howard Markel, professor of medical history at the University of Michigan aids the government officials by providing advise on methods to contain pandemics. He lost his 84-year-old mother due to COVID-19. Dr Markel says, "It's not just a number. It's human beings. It's people we love. It's our brothers, our sisters. It's people we know."

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UN Chief on Coronavirus death toll

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the worldwide death toll 'an agonising milestone' and a 'mind-numbing figure'. In an official statement, the UN Chief said, "Our world has reached an agonizing milestone: the loss of one million lives from the COVID-19 pandemic. It's a mind-numbing figure. Yet we must never lose sight of each and every individual life. They were fathers and mothers, wives and husbands, brothers and sisters, friends and colleagues. The pain has been multiplied by the savageness of this disease. And still, there is no end in sight to the spread of the virus, the loss of jobs, the disruption of education, the upheaval to our lives. We can overcome this challenge. But we must learn from the mistakes. Responsible leadership matters. Science matters. Cooperation matters - and misinformation kills."

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COVID-19 in the US

Several parts of Europe are experiencing a second wave of coronavirus and experts worry that the US may experience the same. Despite the wealth and medical resources, the US has 71,64,954 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 2,05,000 COVID-19 deaths. After the sharp downfall in infections for about eight weeks straight, the US witnessed a major spike in COVID-19 infections in the last one week. Moreover, America currently reports over 30,000 cases daily and has 21,741 cases per one million people. The reopening of college campuses has also led to new COVID-19 outbreaks in the country. The experts have expressed concerns about the Labour Day holiday gathering as well as the reopening of schools, as reported by international media.

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(With inputs from PTI)