Nigeria COVID-19 cases hit 1,932 as US records 6000 deaths in 3 days

On Thursday, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has confirmed 204 new cases of COVID-19 in 17 states and the federal capital territory, TopNaija.ng reports.

The number of recovered patients increased from 305 to 319, while the number of fatalities increased from 51 to 58. A total of 1,932 cases have now been confirmed in 34 states and the federal capital territory – Cross River and Kogi have not recorded any case of COVID-19.

A breakdown of the new cases showed that 80 were recorded in Kano, 45 in Lagos, 12 in Gombe, nine each in Bauchi and Sokoto, seven each in Borno and Edo, six each in Rivers and Ogun, four each in the FCT, Akwa Ibom and Bayelsa, three in Kaduna, two each in Oyo, Delta and Nasarawa and one each in Ondo and Kebbi.

With the increase in the number of cases, Chikwe Ihekweazu, director-general of the NCDC, says the agency will focus on scaling up testing capacity across the country, but with special focus on Lagos, Kano and the federal capital territory.

Meanwhile, United States recorded more than 2,000 coronavirus deaths in a 24-hour period for the third day running, according to the latest real-time tally Thursday reported by Johns Hopkins University.

The country — hardest hit by the pandemic in terms of the number of fatalities — recorded 2,053 deaths on Thursday, after 2,502 deaths on Wednesday and 2,207 on Tuesday.

At least 62,906 people have now died in the United States, according to the Baltimore-based university.