Virus Taking Major Tolls Globally

March 22, 2020 8:12 am

SOAVE, Italy (AP) — Italy, Iran and the United States reported soaring new death tolls as the coronavirus pandemic marched relentlessly across the globe Sunday, prompting a scramble in hard-hit regions to set up more hospital beds and replenish the dwindling medical supplies needed to keep health workers safe. Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte went on TV near midnight, announcing that he was tightening the country’s lockdown and shutting down all production facilities except those providing essential goods and services. He cautioned citizens to be calm and patient, insisting there was “no alternative” than to impose further restrictions. Scientists have argued that avoiding even one infection means scores more are prevented down the line. In the U.S., where several states have ordered residents to stay indoors, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the government is “literally scouring the globe looking for medical supplies.” Health care workers from Oklahoma City to Minneapolis sought donations of protective equipment. Staff at a Detroit hospital began creating homemade face masks for workers. Negotiators from Congress and the White House resumed top-level talks on a ballooning $1 trillion-plus economic rescue package, urged by President Donald Trump to strike a deal to steady a nation upended by the coronavirus pandemic. Trump appeared confident about the nation’s ability to defeat the pandemic soon even as health leaders acknowledged that the U.S. was nowhere near the peak of the pandemic.