RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazil on Saturday surpassed 100,000 coronavirus deaths and three million cases of infection, according to the latest tally from the Ministry of Health.
With 100,477 fatalities and 3,012,412 confirmed cases, the South American country of 212 million people is the second hardest-hit country in the global pandemic, after the United States.
The health ministry reported 905 new deaths in the past 24 hours, as well as 49,970 new cases.
But the official figures are most likely an undercount, with experts estimating that the total number of infections could be up to six times higher due to insufficient testing.
Brazil has seen 478 deaths per million people, a figure equivalent to that of the United States (487), but lower than that of Spain (609) or Italy (583).
Senate speaker Davi Alcolumbre announced four days of mourning in Congress to pay tribute to the country's 100,000-plus virus victims.
The coronavirus outbreak in Brazil is showing no signs of slowing as it enters is sixth month.
The country's first confirmed COVID-19 case was identified in Sao Paulo on February 26, with the first death on March 12, also in the city.
Agence France-Presse
The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 700,000 people worldwide since it first emerged in China in December, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources Wednesday.
A total of 700,489 deaths have been recorded out of 18,547,833 cases, of whom 10,889,745 have recovered.
Europe is the hardest hit region with 211,365 fatalities.
Almost half of the deaths reported worldwide were in the four worst hit countries: the United States (156,806), Brazil (95,819), Mexico (48,869) and Britain (46,299).
The number of deaths from COVID-19 has doubled since May 26, and some 100,000 fatalities have been registered in just under three weeks.
The tallies, using data collected by AFP from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), likely reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections.
Many countries are testing only symptomatic or the most serious cases.
Agence France-Presse
JAKARTA, Indonesia - Gravedigger Junaidi Hakim shouts "hurry up" as he summons his weary colleagues in a never-ending race to bury novel coronavirus victims at a Jakarta cemetery.
The team switches quickly from digging fresh graves to burying the bodies -- aiming to get the task done in under 10 minutes to lessen the chance of getting infected themselves.
"The most worrying part is when we're unloading a coffin because we have to touch it," said 42-year-old Hakim, a father of four.
"We feel a bit relieved after it's buried."
Some 50 gravediggers at Pondok Ranggon cemetery -- one of two earmarked for COVID-19 victims in the Indonesian capital -- are working up to 15 hours a day, seven days a week, for monthly wages of 4.2 million rupiah ($290).
They dig at least 20 fresh graves daily, marked with white wooden poles that list the name, birthdate and day the occupant died.
But they can hardly keep up with the influx of confirmed and suspected virus victims.
"The ambulances never stop bringing us bodies," said Hakim.
'HEART BREAKS'
The team struggles to keep up in the searing tropical heat, with sobbing relatives never far away.
Families are urged not to linger, robbing them of the chance to perform prayers for loved ones.
"My heart breaks seeing those crying families," said Minar, 54, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.
"I've been digging graves for 33 years now and I've never been this tired before. This is probably a test from God," he added.
The challenges are compounded in the fasting month of Ramadan when many in Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim majority nation, don't eat or drink during daylight hours.
Naman Suherman said he is able to overcome gnawing thirst and hunger in the belief he's doing something "noble" for victims whose covered burial pits are sprinkled with pink flowers.
"What strengthens my faith on this job is knowing that I can help take the deceased to their final resting place," the 55-year-old gravedigger said.
How many people the virus has claimed across the Southeast Asian archipelago of more than 260 million is unclear.
An official death toll of 1,191 as of Monday is widely believed to be well below reality, and Indonesia has one of the world's lowest testing rates.
Government officials acknowledge data are patchy and incomplete.
At least 2,107 people have been buried under COVID-19 safety protocols in epicenter Jakarta alone -- nearly double the reported national toll.
Other cities have also seen unusually high burial figures in recent months, suggesting even more victims.
Volunteer database KawalCovid-19, which was created by health and technology professionals, has estimated there have been more than 3,000 virus deaths in just 16 of the country's 34 provinces.
'AFRAID OF ME'
That would be no surprise for the gravediggers at Pondok Ranggon cemetery who have seen their workload soar.
But most didn't know the risks, at first burying virus victims without protective equipment.
"Initially, none of us knew about coronavirus," said Minar.
"We didn't know what this disease was like until I learned from the television news that it was infectious.
"The next day I rushed to buy my own facemask. Several days later, we started getting personal protective equipment."
Despite those precautions, gravedigger Hakim says neighbors suddenly started keeping a wide berth since the first cases appeared in March.
"Although they don't say it out loud, I can feel they're keeping a distance," he said.
"Like they're afraid of me."
Agence Franc-Presse
MANILA — The cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines breached the 7,000 mark the same day that the government announced another extension of the enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila and other places.
The Department of Health on Friday recorded 211 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total to 7,192 cases.
The number of recoveries continued to increase with 40 new recovered patients, or a total of 762.
There were, however, 15 new COVID-related deaths, bringing the total number of coronavirus fatalities in the Philippines to 477.
Worldwide, there have been 2.7 million people infected with COVID-19 since the pandemic started. Of this number, more than 740,000 have recovered and more than 190,000 have died.
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