RIO DE JANEIRO – Brazil yesterday crossed the grim threshold of 500,000 coronavirus deaths, trailing only the United States in lives lost to Covid-19.
Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga tweeted: “500,000 lives lost due to the pandemic that affects our Brazil and the world.”
The latest update from his ministry said the toll is now 500,800, with 2,301 deaths in the past 24 hours. Experts said the government’s Covid-19 figures underestimate the real toll from the health crisis.
This week, the average daily death toll in Brazil surpassed 2,000 for the first time since May 10.
The country, with a population of 212 million, is the second after the US to surpass 500,000 Covid-19 fatalities.
The South American giant experienced a second wave of the pandemic this year, at one point topping 4,000 deaths per day. More than 60% of Brazil’s fatalities have come since the start of 2021.
It now appears to be grappling with a third wave in its outbreak, with infections and deaths spiking.
According to the latest weekly report from the Fiocruz medical research foundation, the country is in a “critical” situation, with a high number of deaths and the possibility of things worsening in the coming weeks as winter arrives in the southern hemisphere.
Experts are concerned about the slow roll-out of Brazil’s vaccination campaign, the spread of more aggressive virus variants, and President Jair Bolsonaro’s hostility towards preventative measures like mask-wearing and lockdowns.
Queiroga said he is working “tirelessly to vaccinate all Brazilians in the shortest possible time and change this scenario that has plagued us for more than a year”. – AFP, June 20, 2021
