Coronavirus death toll in Russia crosses 150,000

MOSCOW

With 783 more fatalities registered over the past day, the coronavirus death toll in Russia has now surpassed 150,000, authorities said on Wednesday.

According to the coronavirus emergency task force, 23,704 more cases were also recorded in the country, where infections have soared over recent weeks due to the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant.

The overall tally is now over 6.03 million and active cases stand at 474,738, the team said in its daily report.

Recoveries went up by 22,854 over the past day to reach 5.4 million, it added.

The situation in Moscow, which remains Russia’s worst-hit area, has started improving due to persistent efforts by authorities.

The number of daily cases has been slashed by almost half, falling from 6,000 to 7,000 per day to between 3,000 and 4,000.

A total of 3,253 more infections were confirmed in the capital over the past 24 hours, along with 104 deaths and 8,006 recoveries.

Officials have eased some restrictions in Moscow, including the mandatory QR pass to visit eateries.

According to the mayor, more than 100,000 people are being vaccinated in the capital every day.

However, Anna Popova, the country’s chief sanitary officer, said the nationwide situation remains tense as the COVID-19 morbidity rate is climbing in 71 of Russia’s 85 regions, mainly because of the spread of the Delta variant.

She called for strict compliance with protective measures and expediting the vaccination campaign, stressing that it will prevent both the spread and further mutation of the new coronavirus strain.