Virus advances worldwide as medical supplies dwindle

The US and Europe are reporting soaring new cases of the novel coronavirus, prompting a scramble in some regions to set up additional hospital beds and replenish much-needed medical supplies.

Italy announced its biggest day-to-day increase of infections, which rose by 6,600 with nearly 800 new fatalities from the virus that causes COVID-19. The country’s total death toll of more than 4,825 has surpassed the number of deaths in China, where the first cases emerged late last year.

In the US, where multiple states have ordered residents to stay indoors, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says the government is “literally scouring the globe looking for medical supplies.” Health care workers from Oklahoma City to Minneapolis are seeking donations of protective equipment. Staff at a Detroit hospital begin creating homemade face masks for workers. Even rural hospitals are strained as people increasingly felt the pandemic closing in.

The contagion is starting to be felt in US cities far from major metropolitan areas, including places that have resisted drastic shutdown measures. About 150 countries now have confirmed cases, and deaths have been reported in more than 30 American states. There are now more than 300,000 confirmed cases worldwide, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University.

— AP