The number
of global deaths that can be traced back to COVID-19 has risen above 3 million,
according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University published on Saturday.
The virus
that surfaced in late 2019 in central China and the ensuing pandemic has
infected more than 100 million people, leaving billions more under crippling
lockdowns and ravaging the global economy.
How has the
virus spread more recently?
Over 1
million people have died in the three months since mid-January when the death
toll reached the last grim milestone.
It took
eight months to reach 1 million dead and less than four months after that to
reach the second million.
The
pandemic continues to ravage populations around the world as more virulent
variants appear and spread quickly, with some increasing the virulence of the
virus.
COVID-19
deaths have continued to rise despite monthslong vaccination campaigns.
However,
richer countries have been slammed for hoarding vaccine doses , while countries
with large populations such as India and Brazil struggle to bring down even
deadlier surges in infection rates.
While the
count is based on figures supplied by government agencies around the world, the
real toll is believed to be significantly higher because of poor testing and
many inaccurately recorded deaths, especially during the first months of the
outbreak.
How has the
COVID-19 pandemic been felt around the world?
Global
cases and deaths continue to rise, but not uniformly across the world.
Some
countries such as the UK and Portugal that had previously been hit by rampant
surges have since managed to bring their case numbers down and even emerge from
strict lockdowns.
Other
countries have seen their earlier efforts decimated by newer, more contagious
variants, such as the B117 strain first discovered in the UK.
India —
with a population of over 1.3 billion — reported a record-breaking 200,000 new
daily infections on Thursday after having successfully brought an earlier wave
under control.
Germany,
which had been praised during the first few months of the pandemic for its
handling of the crisis, reported almost 30,000 new cases — among a population
of just over 80 million — in one day on Thursday.
Brazil has
also been particularly badly hit by the pandemic.
The country
has registered a total of 361,884 COVID-19 deaths with daily deaths reaching up
to 4,000.
The situation is likely down to a combination of the P1 strain — which appears to have a bigger effect on younger people — running rampant and the refusal by President Jair Bolsonaro's administration to enforce a strict lockdown.