United States hits record 2.30 lakh COVID-19 cases in 24 hrs; Thanksgiving travel led to surge?

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WASHINGTON: The COVID-19 pandemic continues to put pressure on the United States' healthcare system as the country reached a record number of as many as 2,30,000 cases in a day, according to the data by the John Hopkins University.

The country with the highest burden of coronavirus infections reported 2,527 deaths on December 5, suggests the real-time data maintained by the Baltimore University.

The US has the highest caseload and mortality related to COVID-19 in the world. The coronavirus epidemic saw a resurgence across its states in recent weeks.

After last week's Thanksgiving holiday when many people travelled to celebrate with their families, health officials warned of another surge in the cases.

The situation is particularly dire in the most populous states like New York, Florida, California, and Texas, with increased hospitalisation resulting from the infections.

The US has witnessed at least 2,000 deaths every day for two weeks now, which is as bad as the situation during the first wave of COVID-19 infections seen earlier this year. The country has reported at least 2,81,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic, while the total number of infections stands at 14.6 million.

As fatalities across the US rise sharply, some hope has come up with the impending vaccination drive. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US is all set to vote on the authorisation for the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine, reported different news outlets.

The United Kingdom will start its emergency use of vaccinations on December 14. With multiple vaccine candidates under different phases of trial putting out efficacy data, the world is reaching a new stage in the pandemic. More countries across the world prepare for mass vaccination and look towards a future beyond the pandemic.