Latin America sees coronavirus records tumble as cases near five million

BRASILIA, Brazil

The death toll in Latin America from the novel coronavirus passed 200,000 on Saturday night, underlining the region's status as one of the global epicenters of the pandemic that is testing governments to the limit.

A gravedigger wearing protective suit digs a grave to bury the coffin of a person who died from the coronavirus disease in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Latin America, which has some eight percent of the world's population, accounts for close to 30 percent of global cases and fatalities, with infections still spreading fast and hitting regional leaders like Brazil's Jair Bolsonaro and Bolivia's Jeanine Anez.

The region, which topped 200,000 deaths on Saturday, has struggled to stall the spread of the novel coronavirus, with infections picking up pace in many countries even as governments look to ease lockdowns and revive economic growth.

The first confirmed case in Latin America was identified in Brazil in late February this year. COVID-19 has since spread to every country in the region, from central to South America.

Brazil, the worst-hit country in the region and the second-worst-hit worldwide, has over 2.73 million cases and more than 94,100 deaths as of Sunday. The giant South American nation, which set a daily record for new cases last week, posted a lower total of 25,800 cases on Sunday, which looked likely to keep the wider region from breaching the 5 million mark until Monday.

Peru, which recently exceeded 400,000 cases, has seen a dangerous resurgence in infections after relaxing quarantine restrictions in a bid to revive a collapsed economy. It posted 7,448 cases on Saturday, the highest since late May.

Both Brazil and Peru have racked up more fatalities from the virus than any other country, and together they account for around 70 percent of the regional death toll. The two have struggled to balance the need to curb the spread of the virus with restrictive safety measures while trying to reopen their economies, which have been battered by the crisis.

Argentina broke past 200,000 COVID-19 cases on Sunday and Colombia set a daily record as grim milestones topple in Latin America, pushing the world's worst affected region towards a combined five million cases.

Colombia in the last week passed 300,000 cases and 10,000 fatalities. Argentina, which had early success slowing the spread of the virus, has seen a recent spike in infections. Five Latin American countries are now in the global top 10 for cases, according Johns Hopkins University tally. 

Mexico logged over 9,000 new infections from the virus on Saturday and is now the country with the third most deaths worldwide.

According to government data, Chile has the highest rates of testing in Latin America.  It's done around 82 tests per 1,000 people so far. While the cases rapidly surge in the country, the government tightened lockdowns across the country. Brazil and Mexico, however, took less restrictions and lockdown measures than other Latin American countries.

Around the region, already brittle healthcare systems are straining or overloaded, while economic growth is set to plunge around nine percent, pushing up poverty and unemployment.  - Africa