MEXICO CITY – Mexico surpassed a million Covid-19 cases yesterday, registering 5,860 new infections over the previous day in a country with one of the world’s highest death tolls from the virus, said the government.
A total of 1,003,253 people have tested positive in the country, said Health Ministry official Ricardo Cortes.
The death toll has hit 98,259, including 635 registered over the past day, he said.
Mexico has the world’s fourth-highest death toll from the disease, behind the US, Brazil and India, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
It also has the 11th-highest number of infections.
Cases have been spiking in several areas in the country.
“We probably still need to see the worst,” Alejandro Macias, former national commissioner against the AH1N1 influenza pandemic here in 2009, told AFP.
The government earlier declared a lockdown on March 23, although essential economic activities remained open, with no sanctions for non-compliance.
Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum on Friday announced the closure of bars for 15 days, and earlier closing times for restaurants, cinemas and gyms due to the spike in infections and hospitalisations over the last week.
She also said daily tests will be increased to 10,000.
The capital has seen a surge in infections since mid-October, and remains the epicentre of the pandemic in Mexico. – AFP, November 15, 2020
