US: Coronavirus-related deaths near 600

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ANKARA (AA) - The coronavirus death toll in the U.S. neared 600 on Tuesday, while the number of cases reached 46,450, according to figures compiled by John Hopkins University.

The sobering new figures put the U.S. in the top three countries worldwide with the most cases, after Italy and China.

New York City and the northwestern state of Washington – where the country’s first case was reported in late January – are the hardest hit, with 125 and 113 fatalities, respectively.

In all, 333 people diagnosed with COVID-19 in the U.S. have recovered from the disease so far.

Cases have been reported in all 50 states of the U.S., as well as Washington, D.C. and the territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Johns Hopkins figures exceed the official tally compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which are updated daily but only for cases reported by 4 p.m. local time (2000GMT) the preceding day.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he has activated the National Guard to help New York, California, and Washington state respond to the pandemic.

After emerging in Wuhan, China last December, the virus has spread to at least 168 countries and regions around the globe, claiming over 16,500 lives as of Tuesday, while confirmed cases topped 382,600.

Nearly 102,000 people have recovered from the epidemic.

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a pandemic.