- The number of deaths related to COVID-19 passed four million worldwide on Thursday, according to a Reuters tally
- It took more than a year for the global death tally to pass two million, and just 166 days to record the next two million
- The United States, Brazil, India, Russia and Mexico account for roughly half of all fatalities globally
- However, the World Health Organisation said last month that the actual number of deaths could be two to three times higher
The number of deaths related to COVID-19 passed a grim milestone of four million on Thursday, according to a Reuters tally, as many countries continue the race to vaccinate their citizens.
It took more than a year for the worldwide death tally to pass two million, and just 166 days to record the next two million.
The top five countries by number of deaths — the United States, Brazil, India, Russia and Mexico — account for roughly half of all fatalities globally, while Peru, Hungary, Bosnia, the Czech Republic and Gibraltar have the highest rate of deaths relative to their populations.
Some countries in Latin America are facing their worst outbreaks since March, with 43 of every 100 infections worldwide being reported from the region.
Hospitals in Bolivia, Chile and Uruguay are seeing patients largely between the ages of 25 and 40, as the trend towards infections in younger people continues. In Sao Paolo, Brazil, 80 per cent of those in intensive care units are COVID-19 patients.
Many health experts believe the official death toll to be understated, with the World Health Organisation saying last month that the actual number could be two to three times higher.
Last week, India’s state of Bihar raised its COVID-19 death toll significantly higher after discovering thousands of unreported cases.