Virus Deaths Soar in US, Europe as Trump sees
light at end of Tunnel
The
United States saw nearly 2,000 coronavirus deaths for a second day running as
the toll soared again in Europe, despite US President Donald Trump s
insistence that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Governments
are grappling with how to balance public safety against the devastating
economic impact of stay-at-home orders that have erased millions of jobs in a
matter of weeks.
More
than 86,000 people worldwide have died in the virus crisis, which has sent the
global economy spiralling and forced billions of people to remain at home as
much as possible.
As
the economic downturn starts to bite, health experts stressed that any
premature loosening of restrictions could accelerate the spread of a contagion
that has already infiltrated nearly every country.
In
France, one of the hardest-hit nations in Europe with more than 10,000 deaths,
President Emmanuel Macron will address the nation next week to explain the path
forward.
The
confinement order issued on March 17 "will be extended" beyond the
current deadline of April 15, an official close to Macron told AFP.
The
United States reported the highest one-day toll on record, with 1,973 deaths
over a 24-hour period -- reaching nearly 2,000 for the second day in a row.
Italy
and Spain are still recording hundreds of deaths a day, and the situation is
also deteriorating in Britain, which saw a record 938 fatalities Wednesday as
Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent a third day in intensive care.
The
55-year-old leader s condition is "improving" and he is in
"good spirits", officials assured the public.
In
New York, the epicentre of the US outbreak, the state s governor noted the
new single-day high for virus deaths at 779, but offered an optimistic view for
the weeks to come.
"We
are flattening the curve," Andrew Cuomo told reporters, as he cited a
decreasing hospitalization rate due to stay-at-home orders.
That
optimism was shared by US President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence,
who both said the data seemed to indicate a turn for the better.
"We
are hopefully heading towards a final stretch, the light at the end of the
tunnel," Trump told reporters.
Pence
chimed in: "We re beginning to see glimmers of hope."
In
the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the novel coronavirus first emerged in
December, there was cause for celebration as a ban on outbound travel was
lifted.
But
Malta joined the ranks of those in mourning, recording its first death.
- Global trade to
plummet -
The
head of the World Trade Organization, Roberto Azevedo, issued a dire warning,
saying the economic fallout from the health emergency could be "the
deepest economic recession or downturn of our lifetimes".
Germany
and France, the EU s two largest economies, are bracing for a painful hit.
Gross
domestic product in export powerhouse Germany is expected to shrink by nearly
10 percent in the second quarter, the country s leading research
institutes said.
France
is already in a technical recession, the Bank of France said. Its first-quarter
performance was its worst since 1945.
But
officials at the US Federal Reserve said the wide-ranging shuttering of
businesses should not have the lasting impact that was seen in the wake of the
global financial crisis in 2008.
As
some European countries weighed easing lockdown measures to allow economic
activity to resume in earnest, the World Health Organization urged against it.
"Now
is not the time to relax measures," said WHO s Europe director Hans
Kluge.
"It
is the time to once again double and triple our collective efforts to drive
towards suppression with the whole support of society."
- Stages of grief -
Around
the world, medical staff are bearing a heavy physical and emotional toll as
they work in overflowing intensive care units and makeshift hospitals erected
in sports stadiums, on ships and even in a New York cathedral.
In
Spain, another 757 deaths were reported Wednesday, bringing the toll up for a
second day after several days of decline.
Antonio
Alvarez, a 33-year-old nurse at a Barcelona hospital, described his experience
as akin to bereavement.
"I ve
had my phases of anger, of denial -- you go through all of them," he told
AFP. "Now we are still a little overwhelmed but it is better. Fewer
patients are dying."
In
Italy, police have started to tighten lockdown controls as cabin fever and a
slowing of the death toll tempted residents out in increasing numbers.
Jews
around the world marked the start of Passover without the large family
gatherings normally organised for the seder meal, with some turning to virtual
platforms.
"The
Passover holiday is celebrated with friends and families," Yigel Niasoff,
45, told AFP from his balcony in New York s Crown Heights neighbourhood.
"Right
now with the pandemic, it s a very, very sad time."
- Bailout efforts -
Governments
worldwide are rolling out staggering stimulus measures to ease the economic
pain.
In
Washington, Democrats demanded an additional $500 billion to battle the crisis,
doubling the government s request to help small businesses and imperilling
the rapid approval of emergency aid lawmakers sought this week.
The
eurozone is also mired in bickering over a bailout plan for its hard-hit
members that would come on top of measures enacted by individual governments.
Talks resume Thursday.
The
markets continued their volatile movement, with the Dow closing up 3.4 percent
in New York after European stocks faltered.
For
those who have lost their jobs during the crisis, survival is already a
struggle.
"With
the coronavirus, I m suffocating," 55-year-old Gabriel Rodriguez told
AFP in Miami, where he spent five hours in line to apply for unemployment
benefits.
"I
have to pay for the car, I have to pay the phone bill -- how am I going to pay
that? And the rent too!"
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