Russia Sets a New Grim Record

A 4th day of record-breaking numbers of new cases of coronavirus
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted May 3, 2020 8:53 AM CDT
Russia Sets a New Grim Record
In this photo taken on Saturday, May 2, 2020, doctors work inside the intensive care unit for people infected with the new coronavirus, at a hospital in Moscow, Russia.   (AP Photo/Sophia Sandurskaya)

Just a day after Russia notched a record 9,633 cases of coronavirus—that a 20% increase over Friday, which broke Thursday's numbers—the country one-upped its own record on Sunday, crossing into five-digit territory with 10,633 new cases. That brings Russia's total number of cases to 134,687, the seventh-worst in the world; Moscow accounts for half of those cases. CNN calls the burgeoning crisis "a major headache for President Vladimir Putin," who has gone from calmly sending New York City medical supplies back in March to now scrambling to extend the national lockdown to May 11 as ill-equipped medical fall sick and two dozen hospitals are forced to shut down and quarantine. One silver lining Reuters notes: A low death rate, perhaps helped by the fact that Russia's outbreak was later than most countries, giving it time to prepare. (More coronavirus stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X