US borders with Canada, Mexico to remain shuttered

WASHINGTON

The US will continue to close its land borders with Mexico and Canada to non-essential travel through late October, Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) announced Friday as the coronavirus rages in the US.

Mark Morgan, the agency's acting commissioner, made the announcement on Twitter.

"Restrictions on non-essential travel at land border ports of entry have been extended through Oct. 21. @CBP is committed to slowing the spread of #COVID19 while keeping essential trade and travel flowing," he said.

The US has long been the country worst hit by the pandemic, and continues to account for the highest number of confirmed cases with a Johns Hopkins University running tally putting the number at nearly 6.7 million.

To date, nearly 200,000 people have died from the virus in the US. That is over 20% of all confirmed fatalities worldwide.

Canada and Mexico have both fared substantially better, both in terms of the number of cases and deaths.