Appeal for calm in Mexico over escalating coronavirus deaths

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador urged the country to remain calm Thursday as Mexico registered the second straight day of escalating coronavirus death numbers that rivaled those coming out of Brazil or the United States.

The Health Department announced 816 more confirmed Covid-19 deaths, one day after officials reported a toll of 1,092 deaths, which was more than double the highest previous toll reported in a single day. Officials said an additional 1,033 suspected Covid-19 deaths were awaiting confirmation, suggesting daily tolls would remain high.

Newly confirmed coronavirus cases also continued to rise by record amounts, with 4,442 reported Thursday.

Assistant Health Secretary Hugo López-Gatell sought to allay fears over the new numbers, saying that daily deaths had peaked 17 May. He said many of the Covid-19 deaths reported this week actually occurred in May but were not tallied until now because of backlogs in reporting or testing.

But with total deaths standing at 12,545, he acknowledged the pandemic could wind up costing as many as 35,000 lives in Mexico, local media reported.

Experts said the reason for this week’s sudden jump in deaths was attributable to a number of factors, including confirmation and inclusion of deaths stretching back as far as 25 days. But the country is also passing through the pandemics most critical moment with a dramatically increasing number of confirmed and suspected infections.

Via AP