US Surpasses 300,000 COVID-19 Cases

100,000 Increase in Four Days
New York 113,000 · New Jersey 34,000... Michigan and Louisiana Also Surge
Deaths Reach 8,000 Range

Consumers lined up in front of a supermarket in the Queens area of New York City, USA, to purchase groceries. [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in the United States has surpassed 300,000.

On the 4th (local time), Johns Hopkins University in the U.S. reported that as of 3 p.m. that day, the number of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. was 300,915. It has only been four days since the number exceeded 100,000 on the 26th of last month and 200,000 on the 31st.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. increased thirtyfold in less than a month after surpassing 10,000 on the 18th of last month, earning the unfortunate distinction of ranking first in the world.

By region, New York State increased to 113,806 cases, and New Jersey State to 34,124 cases. Michigan, where the spread has recently accelerated sharply, rose to 12,744 cases, ranking third in the U.S. Louisiana also reached 12,496 cases, nearing to surpass California. The number of states with more than 10,000 cases has increased to eight.

The death toll has also exceeded 8,000. As of this day, the number of COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. reached 8,162, ranking third in the world after Italy and Spain, but since the number of confirmed cases continues to rise, it is highly likely to become number one worldwide. The number of deaths in New York State surpassed 3,000, reaching 3,565, accounting for nearly half of the total U.S. deaths. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced that the number of deaths in New Jersey has surpassed the number of casualties in the 9/11 attacks.

The situation in New York is a continuous state of chaos. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo expressed concern that infections in the Long Island area are rapidly spreading and becoming a new hotspot. However, Governor Cuomo predicted that the peak of infections would be reached in the near future. External support is also increasing, such as China sending 1,000 ventilators to New York on this day, but the shortage of ventilators remains a serious issue.

New York City abruptly canceled spring break for all schools on this day, causing dissatisfaction among teachers. The New York City Department of Education banned the use of Zoom and Google Classroom video conferencing, which had been used for online education, due to concerns about hacking.